New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-02-03
ENGLISH JOURNALISTS.
THE LATE MR.. ALEXANDER X. MOORE
SIR ALGERNON BORTHWICK AND THE
MORNING POST"-MR. JABEZ BAL
FOUR-MAJOR GRIFFITHS THE
WORLD" Mr.. FRANK HILL.
MIR. SCOTT AND OTHER
L,pRITtES
CELEBRITIES.

MIR. SCOTT. AND vi HER
CELEBRITIES.
Journalism is the poorer by the death OF Mr..
Alexander X. Moore the editor or managing edi-
tor Of THE Morning Post, OF London he was
young man with an honorable career behind nm
and the promise Of greater things to come. An
Irishrnan born at Donegal in 1852 and with 'he
talent OF his race for that lighter form OF intellect
ual gymnastics which so often seems best SUITED
for journalism. Like many men in the upper
ranks OF English Journalism Mr.. Moore WAS
University man. having been graduated Win oiS-
tinction from Trinity College. Dublin, and later
from oxford. A double collegiate career IS not
uncommon in this country. Professor Huxieys
son went to st. Andrews's In Scotland as kino
OF preparatory school for Ballot College. OXFORD
whence he carried of high classical honors'
which were thought the more remarkable De-
cause his father has been supposed to underVaiue
classical birmingham erroneous impression
Mr. Moore has been on the staff OF THE Morn
ing POST since 1881 and editor since 1881. IL Is
as YOU may have noticed on various OCCASIONS inc
custom Of the best London Journals 10 a''ach
their men to them and not TO dismiss them at
random The papers and the men gain equally by
this custom OF stability and reciprocal good 1aith
and consideration Loyalty. good thing In IL
self has also market value. II Is common
place to say that paper Is better served wheh IL
g served heartily. yet Of this commonplace there
are editors who seem to take little note A COL
league who knew Mr. Moore we'll describes him as
"a man OF cultured tastes. broad and generous
svmpathies. rare buoyancy Of spirits, keen in
sight and unfagging energy" man may have
TOO much energy. be careless in the use OF
what he has. especially in a profession which
makes such daily and hourly demands as ours
does He 100 often considers the days and the
hours and not the years. 1t is the work from
years end to years end which signifes. Inc
writer who can control his own time will listen TO
the warnings which Nature gives him;-if he does
not they come later in a more peremptory form.
Mr. Moore had a severe illness last winter ana
probably set to work again before he was fit for
work, and the end came.
The owner Of The Morning Post is the real
editor Of it. the real director Sir Algernon
Borthwick is a very remarkable example OF mae
pendence OF mind. He turned his paper from a
threepenny into a penny sheet against the opin-
ion and advice of everybody whose opinion and
advice were worth having; his own excepted. Al
the time Of the transformation, this piece of jour-
,alistic property was reckoned to be worth about
$4,000 year. Its yearly profits have since
reached a quarter Of million. perhaps more. Sir
Aleernon Is politician as well as journalist, and
rerhaps more a man Of the world and Of society
than either; accomplished. acute. with that fac
u:y OF detecting the drift Of currents of opinion
which is perhaps more essential TO the Journalist
than most others. And he has had the gooo
Judgment and nerve to run his penny paper on
the same conservative lines | do not mean
politicalIy-as when It was published for the
classes only. That is what the masses like
The perpetuay recurring antithesis between
classes and masses. which we owe to Mr. Glad
stone makes one ask ones self whether there is
really much difference between them. The dema-
gogue upfts his hands with vehemence to assure
YOU that there is. Mr.. Gladstone had political
object when he coined the phrase-a cheap phrase
enough-and in politics all means are understood
TO he good when the end Is good. And as the end
is to please the multitude and get their votes the
end Of course must always be good. Politics,
therefore, are always good II you have regard
only to logic. Recent occurrences In newborn
and elsewhere may throw doubt on the worth OF
this logical conclusion. But an appeal to human
nature is apt to be true appeal. whatever the
class to which 1t Is made. This Sir Algernon
Borthwcl perceived and on this he acted Hence
his success. Hence, also. In measure, the sue
cess or the increased success OF the rivals VINO
borrowed some OF his methods The time when
The Morning POST had a monopoly OF fashion
able Intelligence" is distant. Nobody now has
sometimes hides itself dscreetly under some such
heading as London Day by Day; or thrives
without any heading at all The judcious editor
Is we'll aware that the reader will find his way 10
what he wants without the help OF plea caps.
The column Of paragraphs heads itself In most
OF the dscreeter and more serious papers. More
over as almost everything is now done by syndi-
Gates and press agencies the reader comes after
a while to perceive that there Is almost no paper
In which he may not trace the movements OF the
superior classes.
And now Mr.. Jabcz Balfour has turned journal
list. / regret that am unable TO say which es-
teemed contemporary first hit upon the notion OF
attracting attention by engaging this eminent de-
faulter as a descriptive writer. The evening jour-
nal to which am indebted for the fact omits the
name OF the sheet in which the contribution from
Argentina appears. The anonymous still pre-
walls In English journalism But IT appears that
Jabez-he is almost always called Jabez. even by
sticklers for propriety-has taken the Province OF
Salta for his subject. On this he has written, as
the novice Is apt to write. guidc-book sort OF
article with accounts OF the climate. statistics OF
industry, discussions OF finance, on which he
ought to be an authority. and casual remarks on
tho character Of the people among whom he
spend, hi. compulsory retirement. He tells OF the
unfailing courtesy and sympathy which he. "a
total stranger" has received from the people Of
SaIta One would rather like to hear what the
people OF saite themselves have to say on this
question Of sympathy. and whether they do really
synpathize with the misfortunes OF Jabez, or
whether they have sympathies to spare for his
victims He says nothing about returning to the
land which was once his home The delays OF the
law In Argentina rival those OF Illinois. ana the
proceedings for extraction are as tedious as the
tod
the valuable lives Of the Chicago Anarchists for
% many months against any possible mistakes IN
the administration Of the law under which they
wore Hpelly hanged