The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1905-04-29
FREE RURAL NAIL
SERVICE ON ORCAS
EAST SOUND THE DISTRTRuTTNfa
OFFICE OF NEW ROUTE

EAST SOUND THE DISTRIBUTING
OFFICE OF NEW ROUTE
Two Views OF the Erect of Rural
Free Delivery Upon Weekly News.
papers City Daily and Country
Weekly Not Competitors.
Another rural mail delivery route
has been established in this county,
this time on Orcas island, with East
Sound as the distributing Office. 1t
is expected that service will begin
May l.
The ISLANDER always notes with
pleasure every step in the march OF
progress that tends to improve the
conditions of farm life and it cordially
congratulates the people of Orcas
upon SO readily and quickly securing
the great advantages of rural mail
service.
In a recent issue the Walla Walla
Statesman said that SsThe extension
OF the rural delivery system through
out the United States is sounding the
death knell Of the weekly newspaper. I"
1t is possible, even probable, that this
may be true to some extent of the
weekly editions of the city papers,
but it is not true of the country week
lies that creditably cover their re-
spective fields and whose editorial
character is such as to merit the re-
spect and confidence of readers.
The daily papers of Seattle and Bel
fingham, for instance, are continual
" endeavoring to build up circulations
in this county, but we are unable to
discover that all of them combined
are injuring the ISLANDER in the
least degree. The fact is that the
city daily and the country weekly
are not competitors. The Seattle
Post-Intelligencer, which, by the
way, was largely instrumental 10
securing the establishment of the
Lopez and Orcas free delivery routes,
takes issue with the statement Of
the Wala Walla Statesman, above
quoted, and makes some vigorous
comments upon it, as follows:
"This is not true. In fact, the contrary
is the real condition. Rural delivery has
brought the daily to the door of the
farmer; but it has also extended the SER
vice of the rural weekly. 1t has benefited
both the city and the country paper.
Each has its own field, and neither can
fill the field Of the other. The news of the
world is in the city daily; but the news of
the neighborhood is found only in the
country weekly. Wherever and when-
ever the country weekly confines itself to
its own field it is continuing to meet with
success. tis the vehicle of rural news
and OF live editorial comment on subjects
of local importance, a field the daily can
never invade.
The weekly newspaper cannot give
world news. It cannot compete with the
big dailies in the discussion of world af-
fairs, for it-has none of the news or in
formation facilities which are part of
daily newspaper tools, machinery and
system.
''The weekly paper can be made newsy
from neighborhood standpoint. 1t can
he bright in it's comment on local affairs
and in its discussion Of local improve
ments and local politics. If it is bright in
these particular departments, the advent
Of the big daily at the farmers door will
never drive out the weekly. The farmer
may become daily subscriber for the
news Of the world, but he will keep the
weekly for his home news. 1t tells about
home folk and their doings, and no other
paper, no matter how big or pretentious,
can fill the worthy place of the home pa
per. The farmer knows the country ed
itor: he knows all the people whose names
appear III the columns Of the home week
", and he has an interest ip their affairs
that Is larger and more vital than his in
terest in all the rest Of the world. The
weekly paper is permanent institution.
It will survive"
The supreme court Of the United
Estates has affirmed the right Of In
dams who have severed their tribal