University Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1908-1916, 1913-05-27

I
these days." said Uncle Jim as h
threw down a copy of the Week.!
Bingtown Bugle, which he had picked
UP from among the many other eX
changes that come each week to oul
Office
The Tammany tiger has beer
struck by editors brickbats too many
times and has had his tail twisted by
newspaper opinion too often for his
general well being. It's not the
moneyed interests or political gang
sters but" He lowered his voice al
most to a whisper as he saw a man
with sunburned face step up to the
counter to pay a subscription 1T
the farmers. Men like that fellow up
there now, who drive rusty mule
hitched to a plOw around stumps and
gulches on a hillside; and the other
kind too-automobile farmers, they
call them-who in the country have
all the conveniences of the city and in
addition fresh air, fresh eggs and gen.
uine country butter. They're the fel-
lows that tell you editors what to say
and what not to say.
What is your evidence?" l asked,
wishing to know the basis OF this ac-
cusation before attempting any de-
fense of myself and my profession,
should l decide to make any at all.
For generally We paid little attention
to what Uncle Jim had to say-Only
enough to show our appreciation OF
his lifetime subscription TO the Daily
News. His answer was quick:
"A few figures from census reports
and the action and opinions of editors
themselves. That for example" He
handed me the paper he had just
thrown down.
Farm News and Advertising.
The Bingtown Bugle is an SPACE
weekly published in a town of S68
inhabitants and with a circulation of
5000. Seventy per cent of its read
ers are farmers and almost so per
cent of the advertising it carries is
from farmers. Consequently several
columns are devoted each issue to spe-
cial farm news. On one page of the
issue Uncle Jim had been reading
column of farm and stock notes, tell
ing of how many chickens Mrs. Jones
had taken OF during the past week,
what Bill Smith got for his prize span
of mules. and how much milk Ike
Ingels' Jersey was giving "at the pres
ent writing" Just opposite this col
umn of stock news were three full
columns of strictly farm advertising,
and the only editorial In the editorial
column related to the value of farm
property in the county.
This helped to explain how Uncle
Jim had formed his opinion. Still l
wasn't satisfied. I began to wonder
If there wasn't more truth in the old
village philosophers statement than
he really knew about l pulled down
from a shelf in the corner of the Office
a copy of the latest census reports
and a newspaper annual and began
my hunt for statistics-the very last
thing that a newspaper man wants to
do which SO often is necessary. My
search enlightened me to this extent:
Three-fourth of the newspapers pub
lished in the United States are week.
lies with their largest circulations
among the farmers. There are 10000
of them. l contrasted this number
with 2.459 dailies, which circulate
largely in the city but which also have
many subscribers in the country. In
Illinois, leading agricultural state,
there are more than 1000 newspapers
which have their largest circulation
among farmers. The same is true in
New York state. Missouri has 742
weekly newspapers.
Value Of Farm Property.
Farm property in the United States
is valued at $4O,991.449,O96, equal to
of the annual bank clear
ings of the nation. Farms in the
United States produce annually $S.417,-
100000. The entire wealth of the
United States is estimated at $1O7,-
1O4.211,917. Two-fifths of that wealth
is in the hands of the farmers.
l closed my investigation with this
More than 10000 Of the
ssss,e37 newspapers published in the
United States have their largest mum.
ber Of readers among farmers, who
represent twO.fiiths Of the wealth Of
the nation.
The next day l went to Perkins
Springs to attend the annual meet
ing of the State Press Association.