Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-19
The OLDEST EDITOR
JOHN ". OLIVER, WHO AT 90 Is
AT DESK EVERY MORNING.
Owns and Edits the Yonkers States
man-Walks to His Office FacuI-
ties Alert-Born In Baltimore.

YOnkers boasts man who Is probably
the oldest editor In tho world-and a real
editor at that. for he IL at his desk every
morning. debating the policy Of the Yon-
kers Statesman and seeing to 1t that every
part Of the newspaper plant is run accord
Ing to his own ideas.
John w. Oliver IL only fifteen years
younger than Hiram Cronk was when he
died. and he bids fair to live as long a. the
veteran of the war Of 1872 He was mar
ried for the third time when he was eighty
four.
Every day when the weather is fine he
walks from his home. Rose Cottage on
Warburton avenue. to the Statesman office
and remains there until noon. His every
faculty is good. Some one asked one of the
men on the Statesman staff the other day
whether Mr.. divers memory was not fail
ing.
You wouldn't think so If you worked
here" was the answer.
Mr.. divers ninetieth birthday, celebrated
recently, was the occasion of a reception
arranged by his friends. They presented to
him a silver service and four bouquets, each
containing ninety flowers. The old editors
employees dressed his desk with flowers 80
profusely that he had little writing space
when he came in for his usual days work.
Editor Oliver has seen this country grow
from 100000 population to ten times that
number. He has been connected with the
printing trade for more than seventy wears,
and he has been in Yonkers forty years
he was born at Baltimore on April 30, 1878
WEen ne was twelve he was apprentfced
to printer and stuck to the Job for eight
years. When he was twenty he and a com
panion struck out for New York
Fled From Evil.
I was member of club of young fell
lows IN Baltimore who were leading wrong
lives" he said. Zone evening I reflected.
ana. turning to companion. said was
tired o. the kind Of life we were leading /
stayed away for few nights. but in a
short time drifted back again saw then
that to break with my old associations /
must get out of the city and 1 made an
agreement with my companion to meet at
O'Clock the following Sunday morning
and walk to Philadelphia When we start
ed we had but s. each.
We arrived in Philadelphia about dark.
strangers in strange city While con-
sidering where to go we were accosted by
an old Quaker. who on learning that we
had left Baltimore to escape evil associa-
lions gave US nights lodging and on the
following day secured work for my COM
panion. The printing trade was very dull
in Philadelphia at that time and my friend
wanted to return to Baltimore, but 1 per-
suaded him to go on with me to New York
We had to walk all the way, and when we
Foreman.
II sent my friend to search for a board
ing house while I sought work I found
place In printing Office, and within u
month I was foreman. Two years later l
went into the printing business for myself.
my friend got place on whaling ves-
sci and some years later came to me and
placed in my care about $780. the proceeds
or his voyage. He returned in a few days
and insisted on having the money. saying
that he was going to Baltimore.
In 1910 assisted in starting the Wash
tngtonian movement and incidentally took
a trip to Baltimore Just after my arrival
I found myself billed to speak at q big
temperance meeting. tried to get out of
town. but the committee captured me ana
took me to the hail.
'In the audience I saw my former COM
panion,- whose appearance indicated that
he had become drunkard, and used our
experience as text. but my fallen friend
Is now in drunkards grave"
Early Temperance Paper.
Mr.. Oliver started the New York Organ,
a temperance paper. in the early '4Os. He
and his brother Isaac published 1t in what
was then called the Sun building. at the
southwest corner Of Fulton and Nassau
streets They organized the Sons of Tenn
perance in 1912.
MI OISeT pIOSpeTeu, anu III 1000 nc
bought his present home in Yonkers. in
tending to retire, but in 1872 he became
editor of the Statesman. In 1881 he was
removed from the editorial chair for po-
litical reasons. but organized the Yonkers
Publishing Company and bought the
Statesman.
Mr.. Oliver saw Thomas Jefferson and
John Adams. shook hands with Lafayette
at public reception and saw Charles Car
roll Of Carrollton drive the first spike in
tho Baltimore and Ohio railroad.