Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1898-09-01
NEWSPAPERS I'M EGYPT.

NEWSPAPERS IN EGYPT.
They Flourish on Brides and Are Pub
lished In Leisurely Way.
The creed of the easterner is never
to be in hurry. He is never anx-
ious to learn anything that requires
any trouble to obtain. This is why
journalism is as paradoxical as ev-
erything else in the land of the
pharaohs. Newspapers are run for
the benefit of the owners, not of the
public. The less news a journal
contains the more it pleases the pro-
prietor. He likes his staff to arrive
at 0 clock in the morning and leave
before l p. m. The papers, without
exception, appear about 3 o'clock in
the afternoon. Any superfuous en-
ergy insures immediate dismissal.
Advertisements receive prominent
notice in the news columns. 1t is
even on record that an Egyptian
editor has announced to the public
that he has sampled a special brand
of Scotch" the night before and
found the flavor excellent" That
will insure him a case of 10 dozen
on his arrival home that evening.
Alexandria and Cairo between
them contain some 90 papers, most
ly Arabic OF French. The latter
predominant. There is one English
daily published in Alexandria and
one English weekly at Cairo. The
former has stood the test of an ex-
istence of several years; the latter
is new institution 1t is worked
on the American plan. It is vulgar,
but a good hotel guide. The former
is devoted mainly to shipping news,
and the editor is an old established
lo-Egyptian.
Egypt, like the Channel islands,
eschews anything so commonplace
as English news The confirmed
Anglo-Egyptian takes little interest
in home news, military and official
people, of course, excepted. Any
way they don't publish home news
in the papers. Journals, like Off
Gals, subsist mainly on backsheesh.
The merest official matters consti-
tute the main news of the day. The
papers contain but few headings.
Scare columns are unknown. A
new British or French hand, fresh
from home, who wants to interview
celebrities as they pass through, is
quickly suppressed. The Egyptian
press, like speech, according to Tai
leyrand, has been given us to sup
press our thoughts, or news, not to
reveal them.
This is tantalizing to the energetic
journalist, but the Egyptian editor
knows best The susceptibilities of
IA more or less interested powers
would be raised at once if anything
wrong were said. Hence it is that
nobody will venture to start new
paper in Egypt. It is not worth
while. No man unacquainted with
Egypt internally could run paper
successfully in that country.
The consular court cases form an
amusing feature Of Egyptian journal
ism. The average European reporter
would stand aghast had he to attend
them all. Every European powc--
worth mentioning has it's own con-
sular court. Then, as all the world
knows, there are the mixed courts
Last of all come the native tribn-
nails. Were the proceedings in all
of these courts duly reported, the
staff of the average Egyptian paper
would have to be largely increased.
Some little attention is given in
the English paper to racing, mainly
because this is chiefly under the
auspices of British officers.
The news of the day mainly con
sists of the movements of ministers,
how many natives have been knock
ed down by derricks on the quay
and the arrests for smuggling hash
eesh. IT a fire takes place, it is
given three lines in back column.
Full reports are great rareties. We'd
dings and social functions are given
prominence or not, according to the
relations, pleasant or otherwise, the
editor ma have with the parties
Observation-Disclosures Weekly.