Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-09-17
Modern Newspaper Stress.

A few days since Chief Justice
Emeritus Whitehouse remarked to the
editor of this paper that he had Otter
marveled at the good quality of the
mass of matter handled daily by the
average newspaper worker. He deemed
the few errors and misstatements made
in the rush and hurly-burly of present
day newspaper making as bespeakine
phenomenal heights in physical and
mental alertness and efficiency.
The former chief justice is much bet.
ter able to understand the keyed up
atmosphere of newspaper offices. than
is the possessor of the average judi
cial mind. He has been a newspaper
worker and partaken of the spirit ane
| the expectancy; and he has observed
| the difference in preparation between
| the legal opinion or expression and the
newspaper article or statement The
former is scrutinized from every angle
and its propositions objected to. criti.
c:zed and discussed by the author.
The newspaper worker is person
of rapid conelusions-and chances.
The first idea off the speeding mental
gyrator has to GO there is no time
10 back up. Facts must be gathered
in haste but with precision, Therein
lies the value of his service and the
hazard of his job. If he fails 10 make
good" in this respect he had better
adopt the legal profession or some
other requiring less constant high pres
sure-and larger remuneration
Dealing with the stress of newspaper
making and the marvel that so few
errors occur, the Richmond (Na.) News
| Leader the other days said;
The real wonder of newspaper max
| ing is not that some errors occur but
| that relatively these are so few. Con-
slider facts; Between 8 in the morning
| and $3.50 in the afternoon the News
| Leader gathers in the city or receives
| from its correspondents by telegraph
and by mail 10 full pages of news. Ii
| these 10 pages are to be found some
81, 300 alphabet letters, every one o.
which has to be written by hand ol
by typewriter or received over thu
telegraph wire. These have to be Sc
on the machines and have to be cor
rected at d time when every secont
l ina
this is done in about seven hours, an,
| that the number of words handled
| every day is in excess of those printed
| in the average novel, even relative ac
| curacy is remarkable. When. as Otter
happens, the number of Typographical
| errors in 1000 characters printed on
page can be counted on the fingers o
one hand, the achievement is marvel
| THE same is true of the contents o
what is printed. Measurements of fac
| there are inevitably in every issue o
| every newspaper, but how few thes
are and how unimportant in the mai
when the conditions are taken int
account The average city representa-
| tive OF a paper like the News Leade
| interviews dozens of people during tn
| course OF "A morning and must neve
| show the pressure of time iii talk.n
| with any of them. He returns to hi
| Office before noon and writes at break
neck speed from scanty notes the sub
stance of what he has gathered durin
the morning. Occasionally he make
an error. but in the vast majority o
all cases, despite his hurry, the error
attributed to him are made by thos
who give him information. indeed, I
would be we'll for some of those VIII,
criticize the inaccuracy Of newspape
writers to try for a single mornin.
the task newspaper reporter &C
complishes every day. There wouIt
be errors enough to bring a hundret
libel suits and mistakes enough to fiji
"a page!"
1.-THE black face type is our mark o
emphasis not that of the New
Leader.-Ed.I