The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-26
WILEs OF THE PRESS AGENT.
he of the Theater Who Tries to Worl
the Night City Editor for Notices.
From the New York Sun.


From the New York Sun.
This is the plant of night city editor,
a silent and austere man, much feared by
the junior members of the city stat, mis-
understood by the seniors, uncommunica-
tive to all, To all, that is, but one man
on but one occasion-that was when he
made this plant, and thereby let one fell
low man know the secret cross which had
turned a once happy nature into pes
simist, had converted beamish boy into
into bilious misanthropist,
That night city editor has been sus-
pected of hating his fellow man for many
different reasons, all proved to be far
wrong by this plant. Some of the ju-
niors have argued that he hated his fell
low men because he could not exercise
over them his otherwise general authority
to "cut" or kill - some fancied that he
was shy, and only needed little jollying
to expand, and have offered him cigars
and have themselves for weeks there
after worn affrighted looks, and taken
off their hats TO the Office boys. Some
went insane The popular theory among
the seniors is that misspelled proper
name once escaped his eyes and he has
since seen blue, although some adhere to
the tradition that he once frightened a
IuulOI llllO ptIUdilClb III lOE speaking
of ''city" instead of municipal court,
and has therefore fallen into gloom of
remOrse-that the junior was not fright
ened to death. But why multiply con
lectures when facts are available! He
has made his plaint and it explains all
One night a reporter, having finish ed
his work, was aooutto leave his OH ce,
when that night city editor came to h i'm
and said DO you suppose you could in
hn init 70 Won to urts -
about the theatrical press agents who try
to pull newspapers legsi"
This was unusual; it was more, it was
startling. His usual attitude toward re-
porters is that they are all in an unholy
conspiracy to write more, and about more
things, than they should. Here he was
suggesting a special And, besides, his
manner was strange; his voice had risen
almost above whisper, and his breath
was coming and going SO rapidly that it
kept his pipe lighted at one time for
nearly minute. These were alarming
symptoms of excitement in man who,
when his unusually large and well-filled
waste basket was ablaze one night, re-
fused to allow the Office fire brigade to
disturb him until he had corrected the
voice of the verb ito give'' used in a re-
port of dinner given to some one.
You might" he continued write
atrical press agentsof this city that there
are some night city editors whom they
have driven to that point IN desperation
where murder is not far off. For many
years | have struggled against them, sue
cessfully, to be sure, but the battle has
embittered my life. In the earlier days,
when only actresses who were robbed of
diamonds, or were burned out Of hotels in
neglige which dazed and delighted all be-
a. &c fnn hat
was easy. But in these days when all,
from the legitimate stars to the amateur
society thing, from the exponent of the
danse du ventre to the realistic old man,
from the lightning change lady TO the
human snake, when all, 1 say, when each
and every one of these, employs a cunning
press agent, feel that, the struggle is be-
coming unequal.
You might give a few Incidents to
show how they work their games Last
night, for instance, a press agent, dis
guised as gentleman, lounged into the
ONCE and asked to see a reporter he knew
was out Then he saw me, said he was
an old school friend of the reporter he
asked for and thought he'd give him an
item. OF course, ! suspected him, but
asked a reporter to take the story which
is that Miss Fannie Flatface, playing in
the 'Bulgarians, had received poisoned
the story | was sure it was a press agent
yarn, but can't run risks, so | had to
send reporter up town TO make sure
He learned that Miss Fannie put bou-
quet to her nose. and when she took it
away discovered some of the powder from
her nose on the flowers. She at once be-
gan yelling for her press agent, who fixed
up story and in disguise trotted around
TO the newspaper offices with it.
!tMiSS Eannip'G apaut had aoarcalty loft
the Office, when another agent, disguised
as tramp, walked into the Office and in
CURED if we were paying for any blood
curdlipg scoops; OF course, he was in
duced to tell us his little tale, which was
that the eminent star playing Hard
Acres had fallen 200 feet from realistic
lighthouse on TO the stage, broken both
collar bones, seven ribs, one leg and one
arm, but would appear as usual the ne xt
night. His friends and managers, said
the dlsguished press agent, were mo wing
heaven and earth 10 keep the accident out
of the papers, but he had happened to
hear OF IL, and sought to earn an honest
dollar by selling the news to the papers
"That agent had scarcely struck the
bottom of the stairs before a jaunty
young man entered the Office, inquiring
for me. He assured me that he was
man about town, with a great fondness
for our paper, and did not want to see US
beat on a story all the other papers were
going to print columns about. He was,
he said, particular friend of Miss lilly
Coughdrop, who was billed 10 appear at
the Mars Theater tomorrow. She had
that afternoon received offers of marriage
from two Goulds, three Vanderbilts and
four Astors, but in spite Of the shock to
her feelings she would appear as an
nounced.
while the office boys were dragging
out that press agent a sweet youhg thing
in chemical wood pulp curls entered the
Office and offered TO give us an item whose
exclusiyeness was only equalled by its
throObing sensationalism. Up TO that mo-
ment was unaware Of the female press
agent, so ! assigned a reporter TO take her
story. 1t was that Miss Pauline Russell,
engaged at a thousand dollars a minute TO
reopen the Solar System theater in a ten
years run in CoYey Regoren's opera, Sui