The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1919-12-16
MISTAKES HAPPEN
WITH NEWSPAPERS
The Best Laid Plans are
Forced to Miscarry
at Times
GENEROUS PUBLIC

Our readers may have noticed that
the pages Of our paper have been
numbered wrong several times re-
Gently, and we want to tell how it
happens. When we have more news
and advertising than we can put in
eight pages, we plan to add sup
plement of two or four pages, and
we number the pages accordingly in
our plans, and proceed to make up
the pages and print, four pages at a
press-run, usually. If we had a per-
fecting press we could print them all
at once, but we have plain cylin-
der press that prints only four pages
at a time.
Sometimes we change our plans
after we get part of the pages print
ed, and then the numbering of the
pages does not come out right. In
creating the issue of last Friday, we
planned twelve pages, had too many
new cuts to make and mount to al
low us to print and mail on time,
the power was shut off a number of
times, and we could not finish all
We planned, so we changed the plan
to ten pages and sent them out num-
bered wrong. There was plenty of
advertising in the paper and not
much news. Our rule is to always
put in all the advertising we accept
and promise, for none could be left
out without doing an injustice to
that firm as against the competitors
who were put in. If there is not
time to set all the news, or if there
is not space in which to put it, then
we sort up and print the most i'm
portant news that will 60 into the
space we have or what happens to
be set in type at the time the forms
are closed, and it is not always to
our liking. Sometimes we have un-
important matter printed for, one
part OF the paper and then have to
leave out more important matter
when the last press-runs are made,
for lack of space or lack of time to
set the type.
Newspaper work goes somewhat
by spurts in regard to advertising,
and income. During the dull sea-
son when merchants do not care to
advertise, we cannot make expenses
and during the past year have fire.
quently turned out editions that
lacked fifty or hundred dollars of
making the actual expenses, and at
other times, when advertising space
was in good demand, we have almost
filled the paper with advertising and
left out nearly all the news, some
times when we had plenty of it set
in type, but had not time to get it
into the forms and get it printed in
time to go to the readers the day it
was expected.
We do our work with the under
standing that there never was per-
feet newspaper and probably never
will be. If we waited to get every
thing as it should be, and get every
error out of it, and then print and
mail the paper, it would still be
paper, but it would be so tardy in
reaching the people it would no
longer be newspaper. 1t is a rush
job, put thru at full speed and deliv-
cred at about certain time, with
its imperfections, and then we start
right away to get out the next one
in the same way.
People sometimes ask us if we
haven't any proof reader in our Of
flee. We know what they mean.
They have found a mistake in the
paper, or perhaps good many of
them, and they think it ought not
to be allowed. We have sometimes
engaged that kind of folks to come
in and read the proofs for us so it
would be done right, and it is quite
pleasing to see the conniption fits
they throw when the paper has been