The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-12-11
CHAPTER Xiv.

CHAPTER xiv.
GThis chapter and several succeeding
ones are compiled or written at some
what of long range, as the writer has
/ been called away for a week, but owing
] to a demand that seems insistent, wheth-
er it is or not, effort will be made 70
present a chapter every day as usual
The experiment of page in colors,
red, blue and black, started by this
paper November and continued every
day since, giving the readers unique
feature. has never been tried by any
ether daily newspaper in America.
This daily colored page attracted from
the very start a nation wide interest
among newspaper men and readers 1t
was a mechanical surprise to some of
the biggest press builders in the coun-
try, and was an innovation which
startled even the greatest daily papers
in America
The feature has attracted far more
attention outside Of Topeka than it
has in Topeka, strange as this may
seem. kilograms and letters about it
have poured into this Office and noted
newspaper men have called at the State
Journal building to investigate the
workings of the feature, both from a.
editorial and from mechanical stand
point 1t is believed that some of the
letters and kilograms viii prove of more
than ordinary interest to the readers of
this paper This is the excuse for print
ing some of them below.
1t is hoped that the reader will be-
neve that these letters are not printed
from any sense of vanity, but rather
for the purpose of showing the patrons
of the State Journal that this paper
is doing something which is attracting
attention from one end of the coun-
try to the other
It is somewhat strange that al
though this feature was started No
vember 3, and continued daily since,
that no daily newspaper in the United
states or elsewhere has attempted to
do likewise. Scores of papers print
colors on Sundays but no other one
has as yet, shown the temerity to
tackle" colors as an everyday propo-
sition. One of the publishers of the
Chicago Tribune said recently to the
writer that the Tribune, which is
called s'the worlds greatest newspa-
per-" was spending a fortune in the
conduct and operation of printing col
ors in its daily newspaper once week
only, namely, on Sunday.
one reason why the State Journal
may have a monopoly of this feature
for some time and may possibly itself
eventually decide to discontinue the
feature in the future, lies in the fact
of the enormous expense. For in
stance, the colored inks alone, red and
blue. exclusive of black, cost in round !
numbers $500 per day, and the col
ored ink is only, of course, mere
fraction of the number of expensive
items of cost which enter into the case.
If it costs this paper with its average
of something more than 10000 circu-
lation daily $500 per day for colored |
inks, it would cost a big daily having,
say, Is times our circulation, $4,000
per day for this item for every single
page attempted daily in colors.
Here are number of kilograms and
letters which have been received on
this subject and upon the subject Of
this very particular feature which has
been running concurrently with the
reds and the blues and the blacks and
which is feared some readers think is
this other feature. of
course being "Reminiscences of a
Man in Topeka"
The San Antonio, Texas, Light,
writes as follows under date Of No
vember 10:
Charles S. Diehl
Harrison l.. Beach,
Editors and Publishers
THE SAN ANTONIO LIGHT.
San Antonio, Tex, Nov. 10, II.
Your color page is an interesting
that you have installed,
and 1 would be glad to know its effect
upon your circulation. I notice that
you have installed the Mutt and Jeff
features 1 think that you will find
that these will help you I have also
been much interested in your confess
page. I believe this sort of talk with
the reader is beneficial. We have been
indulging in it somewhat. Yours
CHARLES S. DIEHL.~
The Goss Printing Press Company
- c.1,i.e..-. HILL. -,