New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-06-23
London, May %.

ms man VINO Is He''' H"PPS "ii'N"' 0
: rrr,ting for ten, twelve or fourteen
,.r-s day. AS matters now stand, If
Va &c not writing he is editing. His
aoreer has been one OF Vicissitudes on
,.bich I need not dwell. While he was
Ladder writer on The Daily Tele
rrenb" the broad columns of that great
.u,atronoIitan newspaper bore the stamp
volcanic mind. In 1.-The Fortnightly
povieW." where he wrote under a pseu-
donvme. the effect was equally personal.
M signature could conceal his identity.
when he took charge of The Observer
that highly respectable organ became
tina one Sunday paper which reprOduces
m a once rather barren morning the
vitalizing energies Of the English week.
Lord Northcliffe then owned It. The two
seemed made to go in harness together.
but they differed on a point of policy
and the paper changed hands. Now it
has passed into the strong grip Of Mr..
William Waldorf Aston. The ownership
of The Pail Mall Gazette" is also his.
When il became evident that this paper,
though ably conducted. was not recover
ing the authority it had under Frederick
Greenwood and John Morley, Mr.. Gar
vim was asked to take it over, and did.
To direct the fortunes Of two newspa-
pers at once, and not only 20 edit but
10 write and to write not only leaders
but headlines and news summaries and
paragraphs and much else, is not a task
many men would care to shoulder. Mr..
Garvin set himself TO transform the
paper He reorganlzed the staff and
strengthened 1t in every direction. He
added new departments and invented
novel attractions. Idealist and apostle
as he is, he understood-nobody better
that the first business of a newspaper IS
10 supply the public with news. Per-
haps the second is so TO present the
news that its readers do not have to
search for II. but cannot escape IT. He
adopted. in a measure and in the best
sense. American methods. He did not
shrink from the display head. If any
thing, he uses it over freely, with an in
sufficient sense Of proportion and with
an occasional disregard Of the paradox
cal axiom that If you display all your
news YOU display none. 1 have known
even American journals in which all
classes Of news were so handled as TO
Feem Of equal Importance. Leading
French journals, like lie Temps" and
leading German journals like the "K6l-
nische Zeitung." go far in the other di-
rection; as if all news were Of equal I'M
importance and the ideal news sheet
were a monCtonous area Of uniform
typography. Between these extremes
there is a middle term. But Mr.. Garvin
has the courage Of his experiments.
Lord Northclife said of him some
months ago. on his accession to The
Pail Mali:
Mr.. Garvin speaks as well as he
writes is an authority on German lit
erature and reads French as easily as
English. What he has done with The.
Observer since It lay derelict in the
Fleet ditch the world knows. And 1
have not the least doubt that if he will
continue TO learn golf and work six days
q week instead Of ten, sometimes go to
bed, sometimes eat, he will place even
ing Journalism in London on a higher
plane and keep IT out Of the doldrums
into which It might otherwise drift after
Its tempestuous voyage The Londoner,
ike the Partisan. is not avid Of evening
reading. but journalism is giving to the
public in Garvin the best ii has
Which Is the testimony Of an expert
Wide is the range Of Mr.. Garvin's ac-
eomplishments. in both senses Of the
word. He is one Of the few Englishmen,
whether in journalism or out Of it, who
have real knowledge Of foreign affairs.
The "Calchas' papers in THE Fort
Rightly Review" might have come from
q Minister Of Foreign Affairs. He not
only knows but gees. The European sit
uation presents itself TO him and TO his
readers as q map. ! will even venture
10 say that he knows the geography OF
Europe and does not, like Lord Palmer
ston, when a new diplomatic difficulty
occurred have to ask his secretary 10
show him where the scene Of Il IS. He
has a mastery Of fiscal questions and
even Of labor questions, which are per
haps less understood in England than
any others Make him Home Secretary
and give him a free hand and the syn
dicalist trades leaders who make war
on society and call II a strike, would
find their task less easy than 1t is now.
1t is not too much 10 say OF him that
he has a governing mind.
There are people who call him impetu-
Gus, and he is in truth Irish. But 1t is
ire habit Of the English TO call any
body impetuous who is not content to
clip smoothly along in official grooves
or who has the courage TO create his
own presidents. Be that as 1t may,
there is Of late years no conservative
force which has been more inspiring
than Mr.. Garvin's: no body Of conserva-
tive doctrine more efficient or farreach-
ing than his; no grasp Of political con-
oitions more complete. lie has been
compared by a writer who does not like
him to Disraeli. Tho comparison does
injustice 10 neither IT is difficult TO be
precise, for Disraelrs great opportunity
never came TO him till he was seventy,
and Mr.. Garvin to-day is but forty-four.
He has nevertheless done for the Con-
tervatives something Of the service