The San Francisco call., 1896-05-10
SOME PECULIARITIES OF ENGLISH NEWSPAPERS.
by w. Q. MORROW.
in the sporting columns of the English
paper. Here is a specimen:

in the sporting columns of the English
paper. Here is a specimen:
CRICKET MATCH AT KINGsToN.-An amusing
cricket match was played yesterday afternoon
on Thames Ditton village green, between a
team of Surrey cricketers captained by Rich
ardson, and twelve comic entertainers. The
weather was cold, but there was u large attend
ance OF spectators, and the Band of the Sd and
4th Battalions OF the East Surrey Regiment
played selections of music. Richardson's S
team won by tifty-five runs, having obtained
1O6. The match was for the benefit OF the
local Cottage Hospital.
Such expressions as attendance of spec
tators" and "the band played
selections of music would look odd in an
American newspaper, but besides being in
terestlng on the score of quaintness, they
are better English than one might suppose
from glance.
Here is an extract from a report of some
horse races. Only so much is quoted as
serves TO exhibit the style, but the whole
account Is not quarter as long as an
American paper would have made it:
A deal of rain fell in Northampton during
yesterday morning, but this did not impair the
going at the Northampton meeting. The after
noon, though dull and threatening at times re-
malned fine, and the company was an excellent
one IN all departments. The proceedings were
ushered in with the Pytchley Welter Handicap,
which only attracted quartette TO the post, and
oil these Hornpool was installed favourite, but
cut up In very Disappointing fashion, Bevil
scoring popular victory in the Rothscnild
colours. Chevern, Sable, and Daily Bread were
the absentees of the eleven entered for the Cas-
Plate, Tor which the Lincoln winner, Watch
rover, settled down an equal favourite with
Diplomatic, and won cleverly. but pulled up
lame, being afterwards purchased at auction
by Arthur Nightingale tor $50 guineas. A big
entry for the Althorp Park Stakes only yielded
three runners, and OF these Pastoral, who ran
prominently in the Brocklesby Stakes, won
easily. The Earl Spencer's Plate came next,
and this attracted field of thirteen to the
I 81 MI Rnf h1ENr had hn nall I.
wagering throughout, with Seaport and Propo-
sition next in demand. There was q tiresome
/ delay owing to the reported bolting of Quee n
OF the Chase, the race eventually being started
without her. Bethisy failed to get placed, but
Proposition, an own sister TO Euclid, won
easily.
The records OF time are given in an ap-
pended table. The compactness of the
foregoing account is as charming as the
simplicity OF the language employed.
seemingly inexplicable American in
consistency is the mad hurry of the people
on one hand and their greedy demand for
enormous newspapers and dilute news on
the other. 1t would seem that an Eng
llshman, who Is never In hurry and has
abundant leisure, would be the one to de-
mand that sort of journalism. Perhaps
an explanation of the American re-
quirement is the fact that an issue
OF newspaper contains only one or
a few matters of news that a sub
ScrlDer cares 10 reaO, ana tnat ne wants
them presented as fully as possible. Hence
the American paper must present full re-
ports on all subjects in order to meet the
requirements of all classes of readers. If
this be the explanation we must infer
either that Englishmen read newspa pers
less than Americans or that they read as
much and thus acquire wider range of
! information. Whichever of these views
may be taken, it is evident that the Amer
lean plan tends to compel American read
ers to pursue very limited lines of reading
This is misfortune. A few papers, the
San Francisco CALL among them, obviate
this evil by maintaining a special depart
ment presenting all the local news in
short paragraphs, the fuller reports appear
ing IN other parts of the paper.