East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1905-08-14

Push Livermore, the very versa
tile editor of the Baker City Maver-
lex, who is more or less familiar with
local conditions in Pendleton, writes
the following entertaining review of
e strenuous journalistic life led by
Pendleton editors:
My friend, Elmer Dodd, of the PEN
dleton Morning Tribune and the Bak-
er City Evening Herald, is finding the
ownership of "string" of opinion
moulding newspapers anything but
beer and skittles.
Bert Huffman. of the Pendleton f.
plenty. Bert accuses Elmer of doing
a Jekyl-Hyde stunt-serving Mann
mon in Pendleton and God in Baker
trying to pry off the lid from the
Wheat town and sitting on it in the
Queen city.
It's fact that Dodds Tribune is
the official organ of the Ancient and
Honorable Bunch of Open Town
Boosters in Pendleton, the unbuyable
because already-bnught advocate of
the inalienable right of faro-dealers,
in tie xtra-hazardous class, to slide
down the municipal cellar door and
play in the municipal front yard
whenever and as often as they please.
The Tribune is branded all right
with the double o. But the Herald
in Baker! Why, the Herald is really
more of a maverick than Maverick.
This is because.
l violate no conf Gence when /
truthfully relate that there are some
thing like 16 political herd-riders and
policy-moulding stockholders in the
Herald Publishing company, who ride
around with red-hot branding irons,
each looking for a chance to sock his
mark and leave II sizzling on the
flank of the Herald.
Notwithstanding which, there Is
still no brand on tie Herald. A 5000
stockholder rides furiously into the
Herald herd, ropes the business man.
ager, throws and ties him. and starts
to get busy with his brand. Along
comes n $3.50 stockholder, cuts out
the editor from the bunch, throws his
rope and begins whetting his knife to
slit an ear. Up rides a 5000 stock
holder, stampedes tie whole herd and
shouts: "That slick-ear's mine.
Here's my stock certificate showing
title" In the hub-bub and resulting
tongue war, the branding irons get
cold, and the editor chases back to
his sanctum sanctorum to write a
leader that will fill space, but says
nothing-that will offend neither the
5000 stockholder nor TIE $500 man.
1t is probably superfluous to incl
dentally remark that this sort of edi-
torial writing is not as easy as rolling
off a log-particularly when a fac
tional herd of subscribers get to
milling around and believing for
something solid and substantial under
the editorial sub-head.
A recent editorial in the Herald
pointed to by Bert Huffman, and
showing up the tactics of the Baker
City saloon men in an unfavorable
light, was one of those inevitable
"slips' which occur in even the best
regulated newspaper offices. 1t was
probably wr tten by the editor while
under the spell of the $500 mans
spiel and printed before the 5000 man
had "A chance to be heard.
However. II did not hurt-except
to the warning stockholders. who have
new piece of rag to chew on. Sc
far as TIE public is concerned, such
grazing as the article in question at
fords the hungry herd Is less like
bunchgrass than milkweed.
Some OF these days theIe'll be q
roundup on the Herald company's
home ranch, a dozen or so fractions
steers will be cut out and herdeG
over into the next township, and tht
foreman of the brand corral will gel
| good and busy, and be able, thereaf.
ter, to call spade a spade without
suffering. Speed the day.