The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1917-06-09
The EDITOR

several weeks age When MAJOR Pat
ton was laying aside hts typewriter In
tLa Iluquiam NuEhiugieuiau office pre-.
puratory 10 Withdrawal from the edt
tofia field be- permitted hIs opinion ut
an editors status Ia a community to
gct into print
lie said he had been living IN Ito.
qnlnm for four years You see. lis
this way Eighttenths Of the people
hate yen Onetcuib treat you with
good uatured tolerance. aud unetenth
are your friends ! think the proper
thing TO do Is 10 gei away from the
town while you have one-tenth "a your
friends
No editor ever had that many friends
in the worlg and thp major has as
many az aHy other man IEp mas have
i've ~ scten put Uf that luo0, but no
mufe. II is Impossible for ans man to
have ever seven friends, aud news.
paper editor can hardly las claim to as
many as the average There are many
more PERSONS Who think they are the
friend ol the editor. bal they are nei
They merely iced kinds toward him
ffiendshtp goes farther than that
IN editor Is the most aSkwarlIy
placed individual IN The whole held of
human activity, II il as impossible for
him 10 please people as Il Is for him 10
be- always pleasing lie deals constant
iy wtlh peoples happiness, peoples
ambitions. peoples interests, peoples
friends In the course OF one short
year he trcads ON the toes Of those
hom be Nmttd least he willing 10
injure
~ acts al omission at by acts Of
commission be- Is constantly and Ger.
tatuly separating himself from those
whom he would esteem and would have
esteem him H. is blamed for things
hu does aud for things he declines to
do tie is forever storm cs@ter and
is hated l., persons he ueyrs knew and
by persons sho have never known hiut
lie Is blamed for things he does and
for things he declines 10 do lie Is
forever STERN ccutor aud Is hated by
petsaur be never kueN aud hy persons
Who have never known him lie is dis
liked by somo who never saw him, by
some y ho delight in cudKellng him be.
cause shey see others doing go
What il odd Ia most persons il the
fact that the average editor does not
care whether hla enemies are few Of
losAn Az a rule he kuows Why he
has them There is always reason
II ma, be the editors fault aud II may
BE- not
Occasionally au editor has no enemies
worth tFeasuriug bur such a Cne has
neither we'll eishers nor friends lie
therefore. Is not doing much rs at
editor
All editors enemies are generally oi
four classes Crooked politicians. re-
hrious hypoeriios aud bigots, confirmed
las breakers az uuqurstiontng and
sycuphantc followers Of either Of these
classics Suoh as these get nurnViable
publicity Hm that publicity 80 times
in iuo is given ~ soctety's safeguard
Mere II not for publicity being given
lo mlssiotug there would be no law hut
that of the yigtlante or Of the despot
The greatest safeguard society has
IL the newspaper that understands IT.
function. and functions withouts fear
The evil II does either viltnny or un
Willingly. are ar records written oR tbs
sands compared with the evils thai
would be- done II the news palscr we're
efaeed And the service II feuders ID
,he cheal,s, thing Of value With which
community can be possessed
The principal differences between
the newspaper editor and The public
center is the difference Ia perspective
The uuo looks a. larger object and
sees mare oI the general detail The
vision Of the ether IL very often pre-
eeFbed except rs to the particular
matter nf which be- Ia the source o'
near the source, of information
The editors status IL awkward be
canse il is rot understood Aud sha'
IL unfortunate for him Ia that he can
mol change il and keep Ia the Fame
Belllnghaml Wash American RoVeille