The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1897-08-25
NEWSPAPER MAKERS
THE MAGNETISM THAT THERE IS IN
THE PROFESSION.

Depew and His "Jollics"-A Tired Lot
of Reporters.
I like to brag about newspaper men
who have done good work, because the
men themselves don't like it. For one
newspaper man to chant the praises OF
others of his craft is considered taboo"
and the very fact Of its being tabooed
makes it exceptionally tempting at
times, SO frail are we all. The proper
professional attitude for q newspaper
man-according to convention-is that
of being always slightly bored and Of
hating above all things to see his WI
or another newspaper mans name in
print. AS to being in love with his pro-
fession-well, that's all right for a new
hand just from college, but now-rats!
Don't you believe a word about news
paper work making genuine newspaper
men tired. They couldn't keep away
from it if they tried. If Robinson Cru
soc had been a newspaper man, he
would have printed a daily edition of
the Juan Fernandez Castaway in blunt
stick type on the sand in front of his
hut every morning and got out an extra
when he captured Friday.
And it must be that age and rank and
station don't serve to benumb this feel
ing. When Sir Edwin Arnold happened
to be in st. Louis a few years ago, a
sudden crisis in India-Russians and
Englishmen glaring at each other across
the rugged crests of the Pamirs, the
"Roof Of the World"-made an inter-
view with him of especially timely
value. 1t came into my days work to
see him, and at the close Of the inter
view he fell to talking about the Incl
dental phases Of a possible Russo Eng
lish war.
"Should such a war be declared"
said Sir Edwin, II would instantly 60
to the front for my paper"-the Lon
don Telegraph-''and serve as a special
correspondent. 1t is the most fascinat-
ing work in the profession, and there is
none more fascinating outside"
And a moment later the English poet
and newspaper editor was telling me
that he considered James Whitcomb
Riley the most distinctively national of
living American poets, and that to his
mind Riley owed much of this to the
fact that he vas a newspaper poet"
instead Of a magazine poet.
If I only had DR.. Chauncey NJ. De-
pew here to join in this talk about
newspaper men, then you'd begin to
realize what fine fellows they really
are. DR.. Depew couldn't live without
newspaper men. They visit him in his
private Office in the New York head
quarters of the New York Central rail-
road, and they laugh at the jokes in his
after dinner speeches and boom him for
the presidency Of the United States and
for anything else he may desire simply
because they like him and he likes
them. The first and only time I ever
saw DR. Depew was at the Republican
national convention Of 1892 in Mime.
apolis, wI.ither DR.. Depew repaired as
one of the big Four" of that very
lively convention. He was surrounded
six deep by newspaper correspondents
facing them, tall and irreproachably
groomed, looking for all the world like
the swell old heavy father in "The
Bankers Daughter, and giving out all
the news he consistently could, I sup.
pose. And when he had exhausted his
budget for the time being he turned il
and gave them a "Depew jolly" of the
press which was really a daisy in its
line. Of course I'm not going to tell
you what he said, because, honestly, it
was a bit steep, but l just want to give
you an idea that l would be greatly re-
enforced in this talk if I could have DR..
Depew here to take a hand in it.
Talking of conventions and bearing
in mind my already expressed disbelief
i'll the possibility of a newspaper mans
ever getting tired of newspaper work,
I want to make a kind of exception.
The tiredest lot of newspaper men
ever saw was at the close of the famous
all night session of the Democratic ma
tional convention of that same year
1S92-in Chicago. 1t was the night of
the great anti-Cleyeland fight made by
Tammany in the last ditch; the night
when Bourke Cochran made the great
est speech Of his life; the night when
such an orator as Daniel Of Virginia
was hooted f1em the platform because
the convention was actually too ex
hausted to listen; the night when Cleve-
land was nominated. With one recess,
if l am not mistaken, the convention
remained in session from 10 O'Clock one
morning until 4 O'Clock the next. l,
was a crucial session, too, and kept
correspondents on the alert every mo.
ment. Bourke Cockran's speech against
Cleveland was made about $3.50 in the
morning, and a dying man would have
been forced to listen and thrill at it!
eloquent invective and mastery sar
casm. But after that came the awfu.
slump of utter WEAKNESS. When the
convention adjourned, day had broker
over Chicago a~d the streets were gray
in its early light. White faced ani
limp, the corps of special correspond
ents almost staggered out and made
their sleep blind way to their respect
i've hotels. Tired? Yes, but it was as
soldier is tired in the trenches. A few
hours sleep and the fight would be re.
sumed as gallantly as ever.-R. D.
CDr-1o.o -, Ga ,.:o I0--..