Mountain advocate., 1911-05-12
"The Country Editor"

lhe Tampa Fla. Tribune pokes q
little iun at the weekly papers of
Florida by publishing clipped items
under the head of Rural Florida"
The editor of the Citrus County
Chronicle published at Inverness,
fila. resenting the insinuations of
the Tribune, presents the advantage
and joys of country editors lie in
the following classic:
The country editor is the subject
Of many a Joke harmlessly INDUCED
in by his brethren OF the city press,
but he takes it all good naturedly as
he sits on his throne behind a piNe
board table piled with exchanges
and gazes dreamily down the desert
ed village street at the orly scene Of
animation, which is a yellow hound
sitting on his launches in the shade
ofa" oak, forced to exert himself in
an effort to dislodge n regiment OF
Aeas that never sleep" Through
an open windon floats the unni.
taxable odor of a neighbor boiling
collard greens and ,he merry tinkle
of COW bell mingles with the snap
of the Office shears as bunch of
clippings are culled from the pile of
exchanges to enlighten his readers at
one dollar per aunum.
The country editor sits not under
the glare of an Office drop light in
the wee hours of the morning and
forces ideas from tired brain. He
hears not the splutter of the linotype
as It slides forth line after line of
dope" beat out of numbed fingers
on q Smith Premier after twelve a.
m. No sound oil the telegraph key |
comes over the transom as II tired |.
telegraph editor rushes 10 push /
page 30" in the waiting copy boys
hand lie hears not the rasping cry
of the "gally kid" as he sings third .
take on society," lie sees not the .
impatient foreman as he walks ner
vously up and down the make up
room" issuing orders that sends the
turtles" with their loads OF make.
up forms scooting for the elevator
FIe hears no noise of sizzling metal
as it spats against the mat in the
stereotyping room and he is deaf to
the clang OF the crescent plates as
they are buckled in shining rows to
the drums of the monster pericctine !
press that stands throbbing in every .
Joint ready to gulp down roll after
roll OF white paper in it's steely nav
to he rushed OUT on the streets Il
lew moments later by Shrill mouthed |
newsbops, who cry "hrst edition.
No, no "twenty'minutes for lunch
met hods with the country editor /
lie takes his time. When a heavy
editorial problem conlronts him he
takes it to bed with him and gencr-
ally wakes up in the morning with |
the matter thoroughly sitted out in
such a manner that even his most
, illiterate subscribers can fall to his |
meaning like chicken picking up
corn. IL his brain refuses to work /
he can lay aside his pen and 60
fishing.
The country editor has a whole !
week to dope out iour.page pap,r
and you bet he turns out some stuff
that is original. lie knows every
one OF his subscribers personally and
knows just what they want and
when they want it aud it's nine to
one if he attends to his business hall
way as he should his wood shed is
never empty and his corn bin never
dry.
Joke the country editor all you
wish, but this happy-go.lucky gent
who moulds rural opinion would
not swap positions with the biggest
edit orin chief in the land.