Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1915-06-29

Of you must have passed each and
every one of them in review through
the forums Of your minds and made
mental notes as to wherein each comes
up to the specifications, falls short,
shows signs Of promise or fails utterly.
Some of these names as they were
read, I venture elected admiring ap-
probation, some Indifferent disregard,
and some sentiments which it Is just
as we'll not to characterize; but, upon
the whole you were able to sum up the
Daily Press Of South Carolina, which
though comparing favorably with the
daily press Of other states, is after all,
from the journalistic standpoint, only
a daily press in more or less hopeful
embryo.
1t is not a very rosy picture I am
drawing; but you will remember that
this Is not boom paper that / am
reading. I am trying to tell you the
truth as I see it, not for the purpose
of hurting anybody's felings, but for
the purpose of arriving at the facts,
with view to Fastening improvement.
I am not scolding and do not intend
to scold, for to do so would hardly be
just. We are fond Of boasting about
the wonderful intellectual and ma
terial progress Of our state, and COM
paratively speaking this progress is
really something to boast Of; but still
we are in our infancy, and the Daily
Press of our state is far in advance Of
this progress. I have not lost sight Of
the sparcity of our newspaper read
ing population, or the small percent
age of our business element that is
possessed Of intelligence sufficiently
advanced to recognize that widespread
publicity is the surest and safest road
to the most enviable success. Neither
do forget that the old established or
der Of things is still in transitionary
stage with political convictions yet un-
settled and social conditions in an ap-
parently perpetual ferment. Fully
considering all these conditions, the
wonder is, not that there are so few
daily newspapers and such limited de-
velopment Of a duly established daily
press; but that our state is able 20
make as good a showing as it does
make.
Under conditions as they exist
throughout South Carolina, and 1t is
fair to say throughout the world, the
first and most essential factor contrib
uting to the widespread circulation Of
a daily newspaper is getting there first
with the most news, and this more
than anything else is matter OF rail-
way mail schedules. The gathering Of
the news, especially the general news,
is no longer a difficult or exacting re-
sponsibility. That is done for the most
part by the organized press agencies,
which make of the news almost purely
a commercial commodity, to be had
by the member or subscribing newspa-
pers at so much a week or month, and
it is the business Of the editor to trim
shape it up as he likes. That is the
basis of the papers sales, and the ex-
tent of those sales is measured by the
number Of possible purchasers in a
given territory, and the best facilities
for reaching those purchasers. There
is very little about that except pure
commercialism, and Of course l am
not including such newspapers in this
discussion of the press, except to a
very limited extent. What we have in
mind here is the qualities that have to
do with real journalism, which rise
high above and beyond such common
place occupation as this.
1t would add too much to the length
of this paper to go into the tecnique
of newspaper making, or into the me-
chanical and financial problems con-
nected Herewith; but these things
must be duly considered If we would
arrive at a clear comprehension Of the
situation with due justice to the pub
Usher. 1 have already said that if
the daily press Of this state Is not
what it ought to be, because OF
conditions as they exist the wonder Is
that it has made as much progress as
it has. You who are among the work
ers in the field are fully prepared to
you who have undertaken to establish
a new weekly paper in virgin field,
are familiar with most of the difficult
ties connected with that undertaking,
and you are able to appreciate how the
establishment of a new daily in a
small town is just little more Of the
same kind of work. The mere publi-
cation of a daily newspaper in such a
town is mainly matter Of money, and
more money; but the establishment OF
a journalistic daily, a self-respecting
daily, is the job of a mar.
In the first place the fact that the
leading men of d South Carolina town
of good railroad facilities and fifteen
or twenty thousand inhabitants, wants
a daily newspaper, does not necessa-
rily mean that such a town can sup
port one. They may put up money fol
start and money to keep it going, fol
time; but unless the paper measures
up the venture cannot last. Ever
though the money be forthcoming ir
the shape Of loans and contributions
the venture is found to prove disap.
pointing unless it is conducted along
Independent journalistic lines, an6
that brings other complications thai
are to be mastered only by the kline
of an editor who needs to be borr
rather than made. Though there be
plenty Of people in such a town, bu
small per cent Of them are Of the
kind who care about local or othel
newspapers and usually an equally
small per cent of the business element
is Of the kind that appreciates intelli
gent publicity as the best and mos
wholesome means of commercial de
velopment Under such circumstances
the work of the editor is that of a pio
neer missionary, except that the de