East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1912-12-07

/ OF the big dailles what mistake
they were making not to employ me.
From a newspaper directory L OBJ
tained the name OF every publication
in Chicago and then started on a
strenuous hunt for job. Roosevelt's g
African hunt was small potatoes when
compared with the job-hunting ex-
pedition which 1 headed in the Windy
CITY. The South side and the West
side offered no encouragement but
on the aristocratic North side 1
learned that a weekly paper in Raw
enswood was looking for an editor.
Ravenswood is the cream of the aris-
tocratic suburbs of Chicago. The in
habitants thereof permit no intoxi-
eating liquors to be sold within the
realm, but on North Clark street, the
east boundary line, the saloons are so
numerous that a pedestrian grows
dizzy trying to read all the hop signs.
Newspaper shops were not so numer-
ous and it was with difficulty that I
| thawed out some of the aristocrats
| long enough to obtain the location of
/ the printing office l was seeking. This
! newspaper was located in East Ra-
| venswood Park, wnlcn ISN'T a park
/ at all, unless one is so pastoral as
| to imagine the few blades of grass
| growing along the Northwestern rail-
road right of way constitute a park.
L found the place, anyway, and lost
no time in applying for a situation.
This paper the Ravenswood News,
was owned and edited by Mrs. Fran
ees E. Norton, whose brother MUIR
dered President Garfield. On the
week of my arrival in Chicago, Mrs.
| Norton had fallen from a street car
and broken a limb. She was unable
to direct the management of her pa
per, and, therefore, must employ an
editor. After convincing her that 1
was familiar with every detail of the
weekly newspaper game, from oper-
ating a Washington hand press to
driving off persistent BIZ collectors by
threatening to knock their blocks off
1 had no spare change for investment
engaged me at the magnificent salary
of Sc a week and room. The news
paper office was located in the base
ment of Mrs. Norton's house Her
room was just above the office and
as her injured limb did not permit
her to get about the shop, she would
summon me for consultation about
the weighty policies of the paper by
rapping on the floor with her cane.
These rappings were so frequent that
decided it would be good invest
ment of my first weeks salary to pur-
chase an electric call bell. changed
my mind later, as the salary was al
lotted in such small installments that
ed in campaign of education for en-
in labor-saVing, nerve conserving de-
vices.
I worked for Mrs. Norton three
weeks as editor, printer, pressman
and motive power for the press. When
l was not occupied with my journal
istic, typographical and mechanical
duties 1 served as bill collector-not
that 1 ever collected anything-and
on the maids day out 1 would buy
the days provisions from the corner
grocery store. I liked the job. AL
though l was not getting much coin
OF the realm, 1 was getting a wealth
OF experience. l figured that this sort
of career would lead to success IL 1
didn't starve to death in the mean
time.
Just how many days 1 would have
worked for the Ravenswood News had
not a newspaper trust reached out
and grabbed the publication, 1 am
unable to say, but the fact remains
that the trust gobbled up me in the
bargain and l stepped into my new
position on the North Shore Mirror
at an advance of $3.50 a week in
salary. This paper was the CONSOLE
dated effort of the three weekly pa
pers of Ravenswood, and was three
times as bad as any one of them had
oeen prior to the consolidation One
of the proprietors had previously at
tracted considerable attention in the
remote sections as an enlarged picture
faker; the other was promoter.
Ihey were promising pair. In fact,
they would promise anything to the
employees, many of whom got rich
on promises. Being the only news
paper and printing office in Ravens
wood, however, they were certain to
get some business, and they did. Aft
er cornering all the printing in that
section of the city. they began to
branch out. A downtown job of
printing worth several hundred dol
lars to the paper was obtained. When
this job was completed the picture
agent collected the cash for it and
vanished. Pay days were again post
| poned for several weeks
The turn of events so amused me
that sat down and wrote a story on
| the trials and tribulations of the su-
burban newspaper office, submitting
my manuscript to one of the down
town dailies. The editor accepted the
story and the check of $12 in payment
for it was accompanied by an offer
of position on the staff at SIS a
week. Did 1 accept it Does a hun
cry man turn down a 50-cent sirloin
| steak?
Shortly after the one partner van
ished the other became so hardpress-
ed with bills that he was forced to
sacrifice the printing establishment,
and Ravenswood's news dispensers
ceased to exist. The Chicago Jour-
nalist, a monthly publication for
newspaper men, purchased the me-
chanical equipment, and the plant