Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-04-26
The Argus and Its Anniversary.

Holy writ hath said. And We shall
hallow the fiftieth year and proclaim
liberty throughout the land. unto ali
the inha bitants thereof; il shall be d
jubilee year unto you
The Argus completed the half cen
tury of its existence as Il newspaper
last autumn. and it was the intention
to fittingIy commemorate the occa-
sion at that time. But like the
worlds fair. circumstances interven-
ed and it was not possible to pull the
event OF. so To speak. during the
actual anniversary period. At the
time it was planned To issue the
jubilee edition the paper was not in
the enjoyment of its own home. for
owing To delay in the improvements
that had been in progress during the
summer IL was obliged to remain in
its temporary quarters. Then came
the Inconvenience of moving. and
later through force of unavoidable con
ditions the publication of the anniver-
sary number was deferred. and even
after the task was entered upon il
was interrupted from time To time.
To a newspaper whose daily duty TO
the public cannot be interfered with
additional undertakings of eXacting
nature are attended by more or less
difficulty such as would not be so
likely in almost any other pursuit.
The jubilee number Of The Argus
which goes out to its readers today
contains story of remarkable in
terest. for il X not confined to events
in the life of The Argus, but tells
much about its contemporaries in
Rock Island city and county. And.
entering the broader field of local his
tory into which the career of the pa
per is woven. il has attempted TO pre-
sent a faithful. authentic and compre
hcnsive review of public affairs and
public enterprises. together with the
more notable undertakings. projects
and institutions that have played and
are playing a part in the develop
ment of the community. That the
number might be "a complete in all
respects as possible, various remi-
niscences and incidental matters of
common interest have been included.
The aim has been to appropriately
illustrate the edition throughout with
views and portraits. \ feature of
which The Argus is particularly
proud is the beautiful acrOstic poem
appearing on the first page. written
especially for The Argus by Rock Is
lands poet. Robert ReXdale. and
which the paper has christened its
Jubilee Ode. 1t il gem of
thought and verse which The
Argus will always treasure.
Much that is contained within the
pages of The Argus anniversary
edition has never before been pub
lished. and as far as the historical
facts are concerned great pains have
been employed to present a reliable
story such as will not only be read
with interest now. but which will be
preserved for future reference and
use.
In contemplation of the labor
that has attended the work i'm this
respect The Argus has the satisfac
ton of knowing that should any of
its contemporaries undertake in the |
future similar enterprise ii will be
found much less arduOus. There are
no copyright reservations upon any
of the material The Argus pre-
sents i'm its jubilee number. This |
particular issue goes out from the |
office of publication simply as a news |
paper. and as part and parcel of the
mission The Argus seeks to- fulfill.
In the newspaper world, as in any |
art and occupation practiced by man.
notable changes occur in period of |
half a century that in many instances
must amount to transformation.
The art of newspaper making has
not been behind the times. The press
has kept pace with the march of pro-
gress both in the capacity of chron-
icIer and historian and in the develop
ment of means for the serving of its
own purposes. 1t has shared in
the advantages and achievements
that have come with the triumph OF
inventive genius or under the spur
of competition and incentive of re-
ward. Not wholly in the methods of
collecting and disseminating news
has the publication of the daily jour
nal progressed. The triumph of the
Associated Press as an agency for
depicting the events of the entire
world promptly and accurately, and
the systematic and reliable canvass
ing of the local field indicate the push
and progress of newspaper publica-
ton. The mechanical department.
too. has profited by mans talent,
energy and skill. The typesetting
machine. and the speeding perfecting
press are laying before the world