The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-10-08
THE CUB REPORTER.
BY GERALD EGAS.


temperamental barometer than the cub
reporter. Tonight he is IL an ecstasy Of
joy and confidence Of ultimate and direct
success; tomorrow night he sees nothing
but rocks ahead and seems TO realize
that newspaper work as a LIES profess
sion is fruitless, hard, and uncertain. To-
night the unbendlng city editor has told
him that he has written a good story.
and he bounds out Of the office with a
Hight step. a lighter heart, and a CHEEKY
goodnight. He feels that he will never
be scooped; he knows that there is no
story In the world that lac cannot get, and
write after he gets It; be dreams Of the
headship Of a bureau OF the hallowed
sanctum Of a managing editor He would
not trade his place with any one that he
meets on his way home, he reveis In the
roar Of the presses; he loves the news
paper office. Tomorrow night il is dif-
ferent. He has had bad luck all day; hts
assignments have been inconsequeDtiai,
and his handling Of them poor. lie has
lost his feature in the midst OF an at
tempt to make things absolutely clear.
He has been called 10 the copy desk and
asked to translate sentence. He IS
tempted TO wait for the other papers and
see how badly they have beaten him. He
leaves the office not caring much whether
he ever sees il again. His shortcomings
seem TO have concentrated themselves
in a huge ball which falls upon his head.
He feels that when the little stories stag
ger him he has no chance Of doing better
ones. He hates the newspaper world and
wishes he might never have TO read an
other paper. He is not fitted fer 10, he
knows, and would rather be a government
clerk OF add figures in a bank. He VIII
seize the first opportunity to get away
from il all. Indeed, no one has more OF
the sunshine and more of the shade than
the cub reporter If he really takes
newspaper seriously
Why we should be called cubs Is not
altogether patent, when, with polished
shoes and a determination TO make our
very best impression, we first face the
| city editor. A term at college OF Hfe-
| time at home has let Us spring up In
warped circle, and we are Under the mis-
! apprehension that the narrow college
walls or tie street in which We live IS
OF our nelghb0rs know we are talented
and gifted, so must the city editor have
| heard Of Us. We have read the biography
/ Of Charles Dana; we have listened 20 the
| history OF Horace Greeley: We speak Of
work on a newspaper as journalism.
I We have read with laughter the news
paper stories Of Richard Harding Davis
/ and Jesse Lynch Williams, and felt sue
/ that We viii never be as green IS their
cubs.
But all that was before We faced the
! city editor.
! Once within the Office. all our confidence
/ leaves US; the eulogies OF our fellow
/ graduates and our friends, which served
/ 10 bolster up feeling Of genius, sud
I denly forsaSe US We are cubs, ard We
realize Il TO the fullest extent We were
/ foolish 10 try the work; we know less
/ than nothing about II.
In our Office. when The washington
Herald started, there were several cubs,
! some degree greener than the others.
/ and one greeuest Of all. since he had
never been in a newspaper Office, never
! used = typewriter. never read the papers
| except the sport page.
/ He was Immediately sent out with q
/ clipping TO find 8Irs. Donald Mclean.
/ The clipping didn't say she was in Wash
/ ington, or where she was. He telephoned
/ to all the hotels. he scanned tke direc-
/ tory and the telephone book. he inquired
Of all his friends. but he could not ind
/ her And the whole world seemed al
! stake. Here he was 20 fail at the out
/ set He wondered what his editor would
/ have done under similar circumstances.
/ and then an idea struck him. and he
/ rushed madly 10 a member Of the Daugh-
! tiers Of the American Revolution and
/ found that Mrs. Mclean was in Europe
/ But he got a notebook full OF incidents
\ Of the Daughters Of the American RevO-
luton and the new Continental Han.
/ and, proud and happy. went back 20 the
/ office. He tried 10 tell his story 10 the
/ city editor. and before he had begun
/ he was told 10 write "a hundred words"
/ He wrote them, with many rough copies
and with one finger: then he went home.
/ The next day, with a pair OF scissors.
he waited for the paper, 10 cut out his
/ piece by his favorite author. He saw
/ the glorious cartoon and a lot Of other
] things. but, 10, Mrs McLean's name
/ did not appear in the first number Of
the new paper, to the staff Of which he
/ belonged.
For weeks he wrote his funeral notices
and his deaths. telling how after a long
/ life There he gave a detailed account of
the deceased and a long illness There de-
tailed account Of HlnessL and leaving so
many children and so much money there
| detailed account Of the funeral arrange
mentsl. John Doe died last night. The
death always came in the last line. and
he never understood why the city editor
smiled, but he did notice that the account
in the paper was widely different from
the one which he took from his type
writer. He found out all about It later
! and doesn't do II that way any more but
the city editor smiles very often now.
and he knows that he has twisted another
story.
He has found out, too. that many people
| object to be awakened after midnight.
He knows that Samuel Gompers does and
that Dr. Chancellor does He remembers
a cold night. with lots Of snow. when he
stood before Mr. Gompers' storm doors
and rang his bell He remembers that a
querulous voice asked him what he want
ed, and then, after complaining that the
owner had neuralgia. the window was
shut with emphasis. He knows that 9th
ers have asked from their beds why the
/ cub reporter engaged in such an unrea-
sonable profession, and why he didn't
come earlier and why he doesn't mind his
own business. And he knows that one Of
| those irate sleepars cOmnIained IN his