The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1899-04-20
DIDN'T KNOW 1T WAS NEWS.
The Experience ofa Young Reporter
on n Country Newspaper.'

Inc man VINO mas never worked on
a country newspaper doesn't know 8
Of the business" remarked young
reporter.
AT one time In my career was
city editor Of u small afternoon paper
In small and sleepy old Southern
city, and during the few short months
that l held the desk | got more hard
earned experience than ever dreamed
OF getting. l came to the town with
certain preconceived MOTORS of what
constituted news-notions that had
acquired after como years experience
in larger places. The first thing l
| found necessary was to read just these
notions to my altered environment.
| The read justment process was where
! the rub came In.
For instance | discovered that the
chance meeting and incidental scrap
Of Captain Jones and Judge Smiths
respective dogs was worth column
and u half, and that II didn't give it
that much the public was disappointed.
! But If Captain Jones and Judge Brown
happened to he present during the
! tight and were drawn into the encoun-
ter and one Of them pumped few
slugs in the other, | was instructed to
feature the dog tight and add at the
tail end Of the story q paragraph set
! ting forth the fact that the cap tain
and the Judge could not agree over the
merit Of the contest and had an ami
mated argumcnt.
"It took just two visits from angry
citizens who threatened mo with dire
destruction If mentioned them in con-
nection with such stories to convince
me that 1t was best to abandon my
cherished hope OF Introducing metro
pOlitan newspaper methods in the
town.
What did l do for news? Why
you could take out u search warrant
and hunt all day and mover find an
item worth throc lines. The result
was that | developed into one of the
most prolific fakirs that ever shocked
| the scnsibilitiCs Of o sober-mind COM
munity. Tho gigantic pumpkins, the
tive-lcggcd calves, the two-headed
dogs, the midnight visits OF safe blow .
, crs and how thcy mysteriously blow
out OF tho city without doing any dam
age, and the multitudious other yarns
that conjured up to kill space caused
the town to be divided in It's estimate
of me.
1.-THE charitably disposed half was
OF the opinion that had missed my
calling and ought to have gone in for
fiction, while the other half was un-
was the biggest liar that ever hit that
| neck o the woods.
4 zone day while court was In session
the county fair was on and my time
G WAS divided between the two. One OF
the cases that came up for trial was q
Il particularly interesting ono. and was
anxious to got all tho details. Jus
Is Before the conclusion OF the CLOSING
IT speech had to rush to tho oiiico tt
% look after tho makeup. When | re-
r. turned tho trial WAS over and tn,
T. crowd had dispersed. So hunted III
m the aged clerk and asked him for tn
nc vcrIict and the Incidents that hat
$ transpircd whilo | was absent. u
Q. told nc that tho jury had decided i
lc favor Of Colonel Blank, but whe
cd pressed for particulars, ho said thu
lis nothing Of Importance had happened
that tho trial had boon devoid OF SD
gs cin! interest.
~o go Cotcs ain't what they ustor b,
I'm said he. Why | romombor back
MS 10 We ustcr have somo cXcitoment Q
or durin' cote day
is But didn't hayo timo to listen
- ancient history and rushed back to t
OllCo aud wrote tho story. Flfte
rs minutes after tho last paper was stru
Il of one Of my subscribers saunt,,rod
cy and remarked, after e.-;jjrroinctory di
ISL cousc Gil THO. !" Gather:
re ,,y tho way, did you hear 'bo
les Lawyer Hamilton lloorin' Lawy
ne Simpson with IL chair at tho c0urthou
lc- this afternoon !?
he 81 hadn't heard about this bit
,ut plcnsmntry, but | foigncd compile
nd knowledge Of the whole affair, and
ch. mutually agreed that Hamilton had be
il n tritlo hasty. No sooner had my
scd fOrmnnt left than | chased back to II
q a courthouse and asked the clerk why
md the name OF the nino gods he hnd
rcd told no about the fight.
not III thaJs what yor call nov
young man, you'd bettcr go back VIII,
,cll yer como from. Nows Why the
old WIZ no guns drawed, no blood sh
en- anu in fftccn minutes after 1t happor
;. q lIl nlum forgot about 1t "
" tuon his advice and return
est where came from.