University Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1908-1916, 1910-10-14
The Editors Work.

'V .ossSt
1t sometimes happens that we are
forced to decline invitations to various
affairs by pleading that we have not
the time to spare and this provokes !
the inquiry, What do you have to do
that you are always busy?" In order
to cast some light upon our labors
and to show that the position of editor
OF a one-man paper is anything but
the snap it is supposed to be we will
try to explain how we manage to pass
away the long hours of the seven days
each week.
Beginning on Monday morning we
start setting type for press day, which
| If we are very lucky, is on Friday. We
average a little less than line a
minute. stick holds thirteen lines of
type and it takes us fourteen min
utes to set one stick. Ii we are not
lnterrupted-we always are-we set
something over four galleys in one
day. But as all type has to be put
back in the cases each week, at least
one-third of the time is devoted to
that task. On Tuesday it is repe-
tition of Monday; so is Wednesday.
By Thursday we have nearly enough
type to make a rum" SO we start out
in search of advertisements. Some
times we get the full quota of ads
sometimes not. Some advertisers buy
the same amount of space each week
and upon others we have to exert our
selves and use every argument to get
them to let the public know that they
are in business. AS general rule
after we sell the space We write the ad
before putting it in type. This and
the setting of additional news makes
Thursday busy day. On these four
days we are keeping eyes and ears
open for every article of news and we
write these up either at noon hour
or at night or both.
On Friday We make up" or pre-
pare the forms for the press. The
| press prints four pages at time
and as the Live-Wire is an eight-page
| paper it takes two runs to print it.
The forenoon Of Friday is devoted to
making up and printing the first run.
The reading matter in this run is fur
niShed us by the American Press AS
| ISOLATION and is invariably interesting
and contains valuable information.
After the first run the forms are
| washed and emptied of all type and
| prepared for the second and last run,
By the time the second run is ready
| it is 4 o'clock. If no accident occurs
the printing is completed at sis. Then
folding begins. When sufficient have
been folded for the town subscribers
their names are written on the papers
and taken to the postoffice. By that
| time we have earned and are ready
for supper and, thanks to perfect
better-half, supper is ready for us.
Saturday morning the papers for
county subscribers who do not get
| their mail in Hale Center are ad-
dressed, wrapped and taken to the
mail. Then the big forms are washed
and we start throwing the type back
in the cases, one letter at time. If
you start to count the thousands of
letters in this issue you will get an
idea of the size of the job. Saturday
night finds it still unfinished. On
Sunday-yes, we have to work on
Sunday-the rest of the papers are
folded, addressed and posted to, sub
scribers living in twenty-four differ
ent states.
That is how we manage to put in
the time. Add to this the impossible
task of trying to please all the people
all of the time, the thousand annoy
ances, the Fostering and the plotting of
one or two who owe us money and