The Republican journal., 1916-07-13


sobriquet of 1.-The Thunderer. - 1t be-
came mild, argumentative and discrimi-
mating" but the lowering of its tone did
not diminish the papers authority or in
fluence. In 1943 King Louis Philliue of
France expressed TO member of The
Times staff the obligation he felt for the
service done him by an article in The
Times. 1t would be long story to tell
of the influence The Times exerted in
court and official circles; of the support
il gave to successive governments, of its
intimate relations, through its editor,
with the leading statesmen of the day.
1t is said that, $50 great was the author
ity and influence of The Times that each
set of politicians in turn feared, coveted
and reproached Delane. He was too
powerful to be neglected.; too independ-
ent ever to satisfy those who courted
upon his consistent support. He went
his own way, unmoved; guiding, inter-
preting. sometimes yielding to. the mid
die opinion of the governing classes in the
nation" He gave each ministry in turn
a fair trial, and if he disapproved did not
hesitate to criticise. He declined offers
of patronage and Office and it may we'll be
said of him that he was "unawed by in
fuence and unbribed by gain. He did
not hesitate to criticse royalty itself
when he felt that the occasion demanded
it, and thereby incurred, for time, the
displeasure of the Queen. After the
death of the Prince Consort the Queens
subjects expected the Prince of Wales,
the heir apparent to the throne, to occupy
in public affairs something of the Prince
Consort's place, but this the Queen
would not allow and kept the future
King in rigid subordmation- Then the
Queen herself remained so long in Sc
cusion, taking no part In scenes of cere-
mony or festivity, and failing on three
successive seasons to open parliament III
person, that it was felt this long con-
tinued seclusion had seriously impaired
her popularity. Uelane courageously ad-
tllS SLltVll Oil DOtll lllSoc pOiillSg
suggesting that the time had come for
entrusting the Prince of Wales with some
of the duties appropriate to his place in
the State, and that the Queen should re-
sumo her public duties. This had no
other effect than to excite the Queen s
displeasure. Two years later the Times
returned to the charge, and this time
the Queen insisted upon the privilege
which her subjects enjoyed of writing
to The Times" and her statement, which
was given prominence, but no heading
other than "The Court" was published
and was allowed to pass without com
ment But after decent interval De
lane made his rejoinder. Other journals
followed his line, but in language of such
back from pursuing the subject. In
1866, after an interval of five years, the
Queen opened Parliament in person, but
continued to work in comparative Sc
clusion.
The Times sources of information were
not limited to the personal association of
the editor with high officials and leaders
Of public sentiment and of society,"
Many confidential notes came to him at
The Times office from high sources, and
more than that he had at all the European
. capitals representatives of his paper
who had access to official circles and
might well be anked with ambassadors.
M. Blowitz, his Paris representative, was
a man of note. Then Delane himself
/ frequently visited the continent, and
! particularly the places where special In
: terest centered, and was often able to
give the officials at home important news
! obtained at first hand, or from his rep
resentatives, before it reached them
through diplomatic channels.
The reputation of the Times was made
before the Crimean War; but Delane's
conduct of the paper during that war
was the occasion of new developments
IN journalistic enterprise. sit displayed
on conspicuous field the power of the
Press, and it gave to Delane the oppor-
tunity OF revealing great gifts of cour-
age, initiative and insight" He main
tanned brilliant corps Of correspondents,
among them Lawrence OHphant, whose
book, "Russian Shores Of the Black Sea, -
published in 1853, had attracted Delane's
attention, and it is said that it was prob
} ably the reading of this book that con-
WINGED him, little later, of striking a
blow at Sebastipol" But his best
piece of fortune, the stroke of good
judgment from which he derived the
greatest reward, was the appointment of
an lrishman, William Howard Russell,
to be his principal war correspondent.
He was sent to join the main British
army in the East, and it is said of him:
''He landed at Gallipoli On April 5, 1854,
and within few days was already pre-
dieting the sufferings which were in
store for the army, so terribly inadequate
did he find the commissariat and medical
departments to be. A phrase which
Russell applied to the English infantry
at Balaclava-' the thin red line'-has