The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-01-22
CURRENT TOPICS.

Editor Labouchere, Of London Truth,
comments AT length on Editor Harms
worth's recent article on twentieth cen
fury Journalism, and in the course of his
remarks says:
In London the daily press has become
far too much of a commercial concern. 1t
has to a very large extent fallen into the
hands of IL few men, clever in business.
and with large capital at their backs;
emnenuy respectable. very likely, but
without any special gift TO act as advisers
of a nation. On political issues they take
the side which they think is popular for
the moment, and they do their best to
make their facts tally with their opinions.
Some of them are bitten with social as
pirations, and this renders them inclined
to keep well with smart society. The
statesman in this age of advertising,
wants to be we'll advertised. He there
fore curries favor with them. and in re-
turn they puff him like a pill warranted
to cure all this worlds ills. If he takes
"a course which does not fit in with the
craze of the moment, he is either treated
with silent contempt, or. if alluded to,
described as d plotting knave or a we'll
meaning dolt. Thus, either he passes IS
Il person too insignificant to be regarded
u factor in politics, or his name be-
comes a household word for a man
lowed with the vastest capacity or with
the meanest intelligence So. too, it is in
politics. Political issues are not usually
very easy problems. To arrive at
proper conclusion, all facts bearing on
the solution have not only to be known.
but to be calmly weighed. To miSState
facts and to draw erroneous conclusions
from incorrect data are the aim of the
promoter of a rotten company. People
subscribe money to its shares, and dis
cover too late that they have lost it. But
the promoter counts on everybody haV-
ing IA short memory, and while his vic
tins are moaning over their losses. he is
engaged in promoting some new COM
pany on the same lines. Hundreds OF
thousands are as silly in politics as they
are in finance. The owner of a ScnSa-
tional newspaper is to politics what the
speculative promoter is to finance-the
only difference being that if the former
is successful, he does far more harm
than the latter.
1t would appear from this that all the
bad papers are not in the United States.
Uncle Paul Kruger was recently in
vitcd to attend a hall, and his secretary
wrote an interesting letter in reply:
Sir" the letter ran, lin reply to Your
favor of the 18th instant, requesting me
TO ask his Honor, the State President to
consent TO his name being used as a
patron of a bail to be given at johannes
burg on the Goth instant. ] have been in
structed to inform you that his Honor
considers a ball as Baals service, for
which reason the Lord ordered Moses to
Kill! all offenders; and as it IS, therefore,
contrary to his Honor's principles, his
Honor cannot consent to the misuse of
his name in such connection"
Whether one believes in dancing or not,
| most people honor a man who stands by
his convictions, no matter how TRIVIAL the
issue involved may seem to be.
Edison was asked the other day to
enumerate his electrical inventions.
.Why, first and foremost he replied,
..the idea of the electric lighting central
| station: then-let me see. what have l in
vented? Well, there were the ,nmeo-
graph and the electric pen, and the car
bon telephone, and the incandescent lamp
and its accessories, and the quadrupleN
telegraph, and the automatic telegraph,
and the photograph. and the kaleidoscope,
| and-I don't know-a whole lot OF other
| things
The talk turned to the early days of the
electric railway, and Mr.. Edison said:
Yes, was in that. too. had q three