The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1911-10-19

down to the typewriters and pound
out anywhere from Is to 20 letters,
asking for abstracts of addresses
and reports. Stamped envelopes are
enclosed.
As rule, not one half of the club
women reply at all-they keep the
stamp Many of those, who do re-
ply, say, Pm sorry but | am too
busy to bother" or something to that
effect, while a very few never fail to
comply with the request and always
respond willingly and promptly.
These faithful few we appreciate
more than We can tell.
The next step is for the news
paper representative to go to the
Federation meeting. The sessions
start off in the early morning, and
to use the common phrase, there's
something doing" from then until the
end of the evening. To follow all the
reports and addresses and get them
into shape for telephone or tele-
graph is no small task. While the
delegates are enjoying their
luncheon the newspaper people are
generally spending anywhere from a
half hour to an hour and a half in
the telephone booth-and more likely
than not they get nothing to eat
until dinner and lucky if they do
then
Don't look at me with surprise. as
much as to say, Why, | have seen
you at the table several times,"
have adopted different tactics this
year | asked for abstracts and |
made up my mind l would have my
three meals, whether or no!
But, to go on with the days work.
AT the close of the session there re-
main the afternoon and evening
meetings to be written and mailed on
the Pullman and this is seldom done
without burning the midnight oil.
with the cooperation of the club
women, the work of the newspaner
people is not only lightened but the
reports are more accurate. II fire.
quently happens-and it's not sur
prlslng when the reporter first takes
notes and then puts them on the wire
OF dictates over the telephone-that
an error appears in the report and
the woman who bluntly refused to
gwen an abstract of the same is the
the nrst to retort, THE newspapers
never get anything right" If she
mad prepared the distract she would
have had it to suit herself.
And some women If asked for their
photographs act positively insulted
To illustrate: We asked a certain
woman for her picture and the re-
quest happened to be made before
other people. She absolutely refused
and made pointed remarks about
in hr,-
the newspaper, etc. A few days later
on the quiet and with no further
solicitation from us. she sent us her
picture and also a sketch of her life
When the picture and article appear
ed in the paper, she turned UP her
nose and exclaimed, Where do YOU
suppose they ever got that picture?"
and then proceeded to call the news
paper all sorts of wicked names.
Il can't understand why the wom-
en- do not appreciate the value of the
.ess." said one of them who does,
only the other day. why, when you
or any of the newspaper people ask
me for an abstract | never feel that
| am comforting a favor on you and
the newspaper. | feel that you and
the newspaper are comforting a favor
on me and the Federation. We GER
tainly want the people to know what
we are doing in the Federation. We
want the interest of the public and
there is no better way to reach it
than through the press. Where we
reach a few hundred women In our
meetings, the press reaches thou
sands"
That is just the point. If the policy
of the Federation is, as one woman
frankly expressed her feelings, Il am
not writing for the public" why then
the situation Is altogether different.
But, IL the Federation, as we all sup
pose, wants the public to know OF its
work and to help in the many good
causes which 1t advances, why, then,
1t is beyond understanding why the