Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1911-11-03
JOSEPH PULITZER
CROSSES DIVIDE
OWNER OF NEW YORK WORLD
AND ST. LOUIS PosT-DIsPATcH
DIES OF HEART FAILURE.
RISE IN LIFE REMARKABLE
Noted Journalist Comes to New York
Almost Penniless, but by Hard
Work He Attalns Highest Pin
nacle In Newspaperdom.

nace In Newspaperdom.
New York City.-Joseph Pulitzer,
proprietor of the New York World
and the st. Louis Post-Dispatch, died
aboard his yacht, the Liberty, anchor
ed off Charleston. s. G. Heart failure,
following an "aess of 4S hours, is
given as tx. cause of death. Mrs.
Pulitzer and their youngest son, Her
bert, were with Mr.. Pulitzer when he
died. Mr.. Pulitzers body was brought
to New York City in a special train
from Charleston and was .s>1en TO his
townhouse in East ssventy-third
street
Born German Parents.
When Joseph Pulitzer, a tall, lean
youth Of years, almost penniless and un-
able to speak word of English, arrived
In Boston in the war time summer of
1864, none who saw him would lave
dreamed of predicting the remarkable
career which was to follow in his rise to
wealth and power. He had been born of
German parents near Budapest, Hungary,
April 10, 1S47. He received an excellent
preparatory education, but his native
country was torn by political factions and
the boy conceived the idea of going to a
new land to make his fortune. He had
intended, 1t seems to go to Mexico, but
when he landed at Boston he had little
more than enough money to reach New
York. When he arrived here he had just 20
cents. Alone, ungainly, friendless, though
consumed with the passion for work
which characterized his whole life, he
could find no employment and he slept
on the benches in the City Hall park.
and the boy enlisted in the Lincoln Cav
airy as a private. He served until the
end of the war but saw little fighting. In
the Shenandoah Valley he acted as or
derly. He was mustered out in the grand
review in Washington after Lees sur
render. Again he came to New York,
where work was even harder to get than
before, because of the many returning
soldiers. In the intervals of wandering
the streets seeking employment he some-
times fingered around old French's hotel
at Frankfort street and Park Row. 1t Is
said porter once ordered him out of
the place. And yet % years later that
tattered youth, grown into a man, was
to purchase old French's hotel for $780, 900
and eventually build the Pulitzer build
ing on its site. Mr.. Pulitzer finally got
enough money to go to ST. Louis where
he knew there were many Germans and
where he hoped to find success. He found
it, but it was only after the severest or
deals of his life. He was forced to accept
the hardest and most unpleasant work.
Gets Job as Reporter.
1t happened one day that the young
man was in a restaurant watching a
game of chess. A shrewd comment in
his terse quick manner drew the atten-
ton of one of the chess players-Dr. Emil
Preetorius, the famous German patriot
who was then associated with Carl Shurz
in conducting the Weslieche Post, an in
fluential daily newspaper. Doctor Pree-
torius took an interest in the young man
and in 1868 Mr.. Pulitzer was engaged as
reporter on the Post. He had been an
indefatigable student both of books and
men, spending all his spare moments in
the public Libraries. Now he had an op-
portunity to display his wonderful energy
in a field that suited him. He was a
success as a reporter and rose to the city
editorship. Successfully he became legis-
lative correspondent editorial writer and
part owner of the Post. An inheritance
from a member of his family in Hungary
gave him the means of purchasing a
share in the paper. In 1868 Mr.. Pulitzer
was elected to the Missouri legislature.
He had found time to study and be ad-
mitted to the bar. He became member
of the Missouri constitutional convention.
He was a delegate to the national con-
vention which nominated Horace Greedy
in 1872. In 1874 he sold his newspaper
stock and went to Europe, returning at
time when the Tilden- Hayes campaign
was beginning. He Joined in the cam
paign and made 10 speeches in 16 states
for Tilden. He went to Washington as
correspondent for the New York Sun and
thus made his trenchent pen first felt
in the metropolis. In Washington he met
Miss Kate Davis, a niece of Jefferson
Davis, whom he afterward married.
Buys New York World.
After another trip to Europe he re-
turned to st. Louis in 1873 and purchased
the Evening Dispatch for $4,000. In a
few days he consolidated it with the
Evening Post thus founding the Post
Dispatch which became one of his larg-
est properties 1t was in 1888 that Mr.
Pulitzer came to New York intending to
purchase the Daily News. Negotiations
fell through, but on the same day Jay
Gould offered to sell him the New York
World. The offer was finally accepted
and Mr. Pulitzer got the paper for $S4S,-
| 900. The paper was in bad way, bu
| its new owner took hold with q vigorous
hand and an inventive brain He made
many innovations in all branches of tht
newspaper field and usually they were
successful. Three years ago there was
a celebration of the twenty-fifth anniver.
sary of Mr.. Pulitzer's control of tn,
| paper. In 1889. Mr.. Pulitzer established
| ten scholarships for the poorest, bright.
| est and most deserving boy graduates o.
the New York public schols giving tn,
winners a full preparatory and college
course. This plan has been extended ant
scholarships are maintained in his nam,
In many universities. In 1903 he sough
| to realize one OF the dreams of his III,
and gave $1.900,o00 to Columbia univer
sity to establish a school OF journalism
He offered another million when TIN
school should have been in operation 10
three years. But the plan was so Sc
verely criticised that Mr.. Pulitzer agreed
| to the postponement of it's execution
leaving the 81 900, 900 for its establishment
| after his DEATH