The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-09-06
AN INTERESTING
 OLD NEWSPAPER


 and one has only to glance at the i crowded tables of even the smallest news stand to get an idea of the va riety offered to the public. Most of us are so occupied with our affairs that often there is simply sllimming of the headlines and possibly mental note made to read a certain article later when we get time" tAs if time would ever give us opportunity to read as much as we would like of the things we like.
 A few days ago during the alteration of an old house, and while there was much rummaging and adjusting of old impediments there came to light an old newspaper. It bore the date of 1903, and was creamy yellow sheet of four pages, each measuring per- haps eighteen by twenty-four inches. At the top was the name as follows: THE NATIONAL AEGIS Ry Hector Ironsides Esquire.) Published by Sewall Goodridge, Printer of the Laws of the United States. sx
 'tAegida concuteret dextra NIm- bosque c1eret."
 One dollar and seventy, Six cents five cents per ann. single. Worcester, Mass, Wednesday, March 2,1803.
 
 The feature of this paper which struck the nasty reader of today'S s papers was the absence of any dis play advertising. In fact the adver- tisements constituted the smallest DOT ton of the entire reading matter. Worcester merchants of that day did not advertise their wares or offer to reading public any inducements to visit their stores, and doubtless house | Gynn hot f. foa busy to spend any precious hours looking at goods they did not need. The only advertisement that appeared in the sheet were from property own CTS who wished to dispose of their farms or houses. There were but few, of which this is a fair sample:
 '"To be sold at Public Auction
 on the End Wednesday in May. '.A small convenient house with a Store adjoining, pleasantly situated in the town of Worcester. One of the best stands for business in the Coun- ty without exception.
 ''Also-Twenty-four Acres of Woods, and thirty Acres of excellent pasture, about one mile distant. A Pew in the Meeting House, and some few ar ticles of Merchandise.
 '-The above will be sold much below their regular value, for ready pay,
 
 goods, If application is made soon.- For further particulars enquire of Doctor Benjamin Marshall in Worces- ter, or of the Subscriber in Common St., near the Haymarket Theatre in Boston"
 At this time Thomas Jefferson was President of the United States, and Aaron Burr was Vice President, and Nathaniel Macon was Speaker of the House. Alexander Hamilton was Secretary of the Treasury. The pop ulation of New York was 6O,000 and that of Boston was 24,0OO. It must be remembered that the greater DOT tion of the population of the United States was concentrated into the east ern and middle States, and that by the term West was meant western New York States, Ohio and Kentucky There was no telegraph, no columns in any paper bore at their headings Special Cable Despatch, and the quickest communication between cities was by mail coach. Some conception may be had of this situation, and the way in which news was gathered, and how old 1t was when it met the read CTS eye. Manuscripts, as we'll as let ters, were carefully written with quill pens, which required frequent and skillful mending to enable the writer to produce legible copy. The amount Of interesting news gathered cOnSfd- ering such facilities is surprising
 The terms Transatlantic and Cis- Atlantic were used and all items were placed under these heads.
 In the Transatlantic columns are these paragraphs:
 From London:
 ''The celebrated G. Harrington, who, having always offended the law in this country, at last acted as High Con- stable at Botany Bay, is, we hear, dead, leaving property worth 12,OOO pounds. The circumstances of his life are well-remembered by many. He escaped transportation for steal ing the Duke of Beaufort's George, at St. James on a birthday, because the Duke felt the pull. It was stolen, but the nice distinction of law said not, privately. Afterwards he was tried and transported for stealing a gold watch at the Enfield races: but that was privately the owner did not