Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1918-08-27
still some brilliant leader writer's

ranked himself had he not allied HIM
self with the Mephistopheles OF jour
| alism-but there is not L single pow
erful editor Of the typ. OF Godkla VI
RAYMOND or DAM, not man Win
tn, power 10 influence affairs as MT
Watterson used 10 mould politics In
Kentucky and help to mould them IN
the nation. There is nowhere n writer
to rank with George William Curtis.
whose editorship Of Harper's Weekly
meant the espousal OF every reform
cause, nor an editor in the narrow
technical sense to compare with Dana,
whose constituencies and cynical edi-
torial page was hedged about pages
which this country has never enjoyed.
There is none that approaches II to-
day.
II il is tru, that the public no long
cr desires the old fashioned. verbose
and ponderous thrcc-column editorial,
filled with invective, dire prophecy and
didactic craftsmanship OF which Mr.
Watterson is still past mast,r, 1t new
ertheless remaina u fact that Il more
widely educated newspaper clientele
seeks almost in vain Tor simple,
straightforward editorial guidance. be-
yond question and in its unsclfishness
and independence. II the public does
not seek or desire political leaders IN
the press, il the sad fate Of the Tri-
bune clearly points the moral as 10
what happens when IL newspaper Is
subordinatcd to political ambition or
to office seeking. there is surely still
room for q man with message ana
pen to phrase 1t. Were thi; not the
case Mr.. Hearst would not 50 easily
have imposed his insincerity and SELF
seeking upon the credulity OF multi
tudes. But there Is no Americrn eui-
tor will: the power and ability OF
Theodore Wolff OF the Berlin Tage-
blst., or Of c. p. Scott. OF the Man
chester Guardian. One searches the
daily press in vain for editors who are
formulating constructive, far-reaching
sociul or political programmes and
urging them by day and by nignt'
There are powerful newspapers still'
like the Kansas City Star and the Chi
cago Tribune, but who In New YORK
today knows the name of the respon-
sible editor OF any OF them?
SO we regret the passing OF Coionei
Wattcrson. Whatever his shortcom-
ings, he dominated his newspaper. lie
WAS its real editor the personal foImu-
lator OF its opinions and the Jealous
advocate of what he believed. we
shall miss his turgid, popous style
his editorials six and eight columns
long published in serial form on Sue
cessive days, redundant with a finality
OF opinion smacking Of the Judgment
Seat itself. We shall forget that there
were other editors far more devoted
to ethical ideals. But We have no dis
position to touch today upon his incon-
sistcncics or to enumerate ms sol-
emn prophecies which went astray.
At such points every editor Is vulner-
able. save when he holds a safe ana
stuph pace. Our journalism Ii ris-
tinetly the poorer TOP the rettroRsnt
OF the man who wrote to Gyover Gle
yeland that, II he should be reelected.
his party would wade through the
slaughter house of blood to an open
grave" and who described Theodore
Roosevelt when President as being "as
sweet gentleman as ever scuttiea
ship or cut throat"
Colonel Watterson has assailed a.
most every president. possibly except
ing Grant. He has been genuine Tree
lance in spite of his devotion TO the
Democratic party, and the pubic
ought never to forget his stead-fast'
fc-long opposition to protective TAR
iffs. his brave resistance to Ku-klux-
ism. when it was perilous to denounce
II and his outspoken warnings against
the government of America by imper-
alits. militarists, and great business
interests intrenched through speclai
priyilege-warnings never so much IN
order as today when the menace OF
pr,,ssianism Is upon us. His Is an
original figure where originality Is
rare. With him 4 patriot leaves tine
profession.