The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-11-10
Mr.. DANA's SUMMER HOME.

city alone, after quick computation,
figured it at $3.50 600 although sometimes
the gross sum he thought would reach
as high a figure as s300,OO0 That means
that in the comparatively small department
OF magazine literature issning from New
York city presses there is an expenditure
yearly of 5000, ,000, not including the in
terest on the plant or any other expense
than that entailed by collecting, printing
and delivering the literary articles and the
illustrations of them.
From this estimate other publishers took
up the computing pencil and at rough
guess reported that the expense entailed
by publishing literary matter both in the
magazines, in the weekly newspapers and
In some of the other forms of publication
outside the daily newspaper field was prob
ably not far from $500. 600 month. So
that these publishers estimate that the
business of publishing literature in New
York city alone, not Including books and
daily newspapers. entails an expense Of
from s., COO, coo to S, ,60000O a year
This, then, is the modern endowment of
literature which New York city alone fur
nishes, and while there are no very reliable
data as to the expenses OF publication of
similar forms of literature in other parts Of
the country yet the publishers who make
these computations were convinced that it
Is safe TO estimate that periodical literature
OF all forms in the United States entails an
output every year OF not far from SIS, go,
Geo. This Is an extraordinary development,
most of which has appeared. according TO
these publishers, within the last 90 years.
Thi. epdpXVrf,pDf Tppf
dustry has been created OF new profession
1t has made a certain market rate for liter
ature which before that time was dealt in
at haphazard prices. 1t has made it pos
sible for men willingly to turn their backs
upon law, medicine and tie schools and de
vote themselves to literary work, feeling
just as sure Of their market as does the farm
er or the iron producer Il has crested a
splendid race of writers whom Mr.. Dana
cheerfully regards as professional men. 1t
has made it psssibie forthose who are in the
first class TO count on earnings which are
greater than the ajority of lawyers in the
country are able to make, apd almost COM
pare with the priucely incomes of the lead
ers OF the bar. 1t has enabled writers who
are of the second class, so TO speak, to earn
with certainty incomes Of from S5,O00to $I0,-
coo year, and it furnishes employment TO
thousands who make fully as much money
by such pursuit as they could hope to do in
any other profession. This is the modern
endowment of literature.
e Members Of the TypOtheter society Of
New York who saw these estimates were
able to furnish in the rough some addition
al ones which will give some idea of the
colossal expenditures cf money each year
which the publication of all forms of liter
ature and its twin sister news reports,
which are more and more being written in
the form of literature entail These experts
figure that the publication, including illus
trations OF reading matter in all forms ex-
cepting books. in the United States in
wolves an expenditure every year OF not far
from 500, ,000, Gee and each year the sum
thus expended is larger than that reported
for the previous year.
There is no other expenditure Of the
American people outside of the actual ne
cessaries OF life which compares with this
enormous sum, and a. this expenditure for
the most part represents profit 1t Is fair
to infer that the American people spend
now more than sZf1.oo0 GO a year FOR read
ing matter. and that this sum is 10 be con-
stantly increased a. toe years pass.
1t looks large in the aggregate and yet
when the population OF the country Is con
sidered it is a com paratiyely triiiing ex-
penditure for each person. Il Is ouly slG 4
year or little more for each family, or e a
person. When the population Of the conn
try reaches 100 0e0. .0)0, II is probable hat the
annual American Expenditure for reading
matter, exclusive of books will reach the
enormous sum OF 500 GJ001.
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