The Portland daily press., 1898-09-07

thing soon, We'll stop getting rich, and I
don, u care TO give up that exercise. We
need sensation to boom things. The
time has come when, with important
questions pending, this town can support
two papers. But there must be an animus
for the second sheet, the esteemed con-
temporary. Now, it would be the most
natural thing in the world for you and
TO quarrel and separate on this pending
question, in which case you would draw
out of tho partnership, make speech
against the movement and take the lead
in the opposition. And, again, it would
be the most natural thing in the world for
the opposition to want an organ through
which it could communicate with the peo-
pie. l want you to start and edit that pa
per-"
Dubbins gazed in mute admiration at
his partner for an instant, then exclaimed,
"Dan, you re a born editorl'
"And you're a clami OF course" con-
tinued the astute Daniel, tive would each
have an equal interest in both papers, and
well, the people muslin It be consulted in
all questions Of policy"
The announcement was printed in The
Banner the next day. That evening Dub
bins addresssd the opposition meeting got
up for the purpose The issue was forced.
The town divided evenly on the question,
and the fight began.
At about o'clock a. m. Dubbins crawl
ed around by the back way to The Banner
office, and the partners consulted long and
earnestly. Next day Dubbins preached
the idea OF an opposition organ to the post
master and few more paving opponents.
AS Dan had predicted, they bit, and
week later the papen made it's appearance.
They named it the Roarersville Clarion.
Dubbins controlled it absolutely, but he
gathered around him an advisory commit
tee of antipavers to assist in managing the
sheet and to give it prestige.
Oh. the beautiful journalistic war that
followedl Editorially The Banner dubbed
the editor Of The Clarion a pullback, an
enemy of progress, a moss covered, effete
easterner and clam Editorially the ed
itor of The Clarion dubbed the editor of
The Banner a tool of the capitalists, a
plotter jobber and an enemy of true
western civilization. In the hours before
the dawn of day Dan and Dubbins met,
smoked, composed their hot broadsides and
laid plans for the future. The propayers
bought The Banner anG the antipavers
bought The Clarion, and both sides bought
copies of the opposition sheet to learn
what the enemy was doing and saying.
That fight raised the two papers to the
top notch of success. The two editors met
on the street Hot words passed. Dub
bins struck Dan, Dan hit back, their re-
spective followers took sides, and free
fight followed In the confusion the two
editors slipped out and escaped to their
offices
s'You hit me pretty hard Dan,' said
Dubbins seven hours later as they COM
muned in The Banner sanctum. "We
agreed to tap easy"
81 had strong provocation, = responded
the other. "Your first blow was a sting
err
eWhat was the result?"
"Seven variously hurt, IS arrested, the
calculations will advance about 200 copies
and there is O warrant out for your ar
rest.
"The dickensl'' (Edited)
"Don't be alarmed. I'll see you out Of
it,
Dubbins was arrested. But Dan scorn-
fully refused to prosecute him. The whole
community now knew what kind OF a man
the low down editor Of The Clarion was,
he said Sending him to the lookup could
not possibly do any good. 1t would rather
| have q tendency to mako a martyr of the
scamp among his misguided followers.
| Dubbins was accordingly discharged.
| The propayers won. But the war didn =
end there. Now that wouldn't have been
journalistic. The fight was waged more
| furiously than over. After another con-
ference between the two editors, The Ban
ner proposed that Roarersvilie erect a new
schoolhouse Emboldene1 by its success
in defeating the will Of the people once,
| The Banner was evidently intent on doing
it again. And the second fight was on
| Criminal profigacy said The Clarion.
Those two ably edited journals began
to circulate all over the country. new
census gave Roarersville a total of 5000
Inhabitants, and this immense gain over
the previous figures was attributed direct
| ~ to the boom started by the two wide
| awake newspapers The Banner altered
it's policy and published two editions a
| week. The Clarion went one edition bet
ter The Banner saw the raise. The en-
thusiastic citizens bought both papers at 2
cents per copy.
Dan was an artist in his way, and The
Banner soon appeared with its pages
frightened by cuts Up went the price to
cents, and tho citizens gladly paid for
their art gallery. Another secret editorial
conference Then the next issue of The
Clarion also contained cuts. They looked
suspiciously like Dan handiwork, but all
doubt was dispelled by The Clarion's an
nouncement that they were secured at
great expense from Chicago firm, and
consequently The Banners price would
have to be raised, very reluctantly, to 4
cents. Of course such enterprise won rec
ignition.
All the while the schoolhouse fight was
waged, and goodly sum rolled into the
common treasury. 1t was pity, the citi-
zens said, that such brilliant men as the
two editors couldn It agree personally even
if their views on public questions differed.
They were really credit to their city.
The schoolhouse was erected. Then
The Clarion became progressive and pro-
posed that salaries be paid the members
OF the fire brigade and won after brisk
fight, What one paper proposed the 9th
er opposed, and between them the two ed