The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1922-08-04

5crlDerS NVeQ IN many SIAJeS.
1t was no uncommon thing, an old
editor recently remarked, for the news
columns to be filled with a three or
four-column editorial, a wedding, per-
haps local item and discussion on
the best method Of cultivating straw
berries.
There was a great agitation
throughout the country 80 or 40 years
ago. There was too much noise in the
land! and the editors, both in the
small towns and the great cities, were
calling upon the proper officials to do
something to curb the ringing of the
bells and the blowing of the whistles.
The people are being disturbed too
much, they proclaimed.
II wish some of my old colleagues
could come back today" said the old
timer as he wistfully looked upon a
heavy traffic street and the noise of
the gas engine filled the air. eve
thought we had noise in those days!
What would those boys say if they
were suddenly transported back to the
present-day city,"
If there was a wedding, the proud
and happy father would call on the
editor and give him all of the details
Gust to mention" If he brought two
jugs of whisky he expected and got a
little "puff." Quite a lot of them
brought the two jugs. at was good
stuff, too" whispered the old editor.
AS the small-town newspaper de-
veloped with the passing years and
new opportunities presented them
selves, editors began giving their
readers more news. In addition to
carrying more local items they clip
ped more from the other papers and
later received from organizations,
plate matter to fill their columns. This
consisted of news, semi-news and fea-
lures, set up in type in another city,
matrice made, the matrice cast and
the resultant plate shipped daily or
weekly to the small newspaper. Some
of the smaller publications use this
yet.
Organizations of gathering
agencies placed at the disposal of the
small-town editor, the happenings of
the world, at small cost. In the be-
ginning, only few sheets of "fiimsy"
or telegraph news on very thin paper
was received in skeletonized form.
Within the last decade only, have
the small-town newspapers installed
the leased wire service that is, a
wire in their own offices.
Today the reporter who writes with
a pencil is unique figure. He's Of the
old school. The new reporter, the cub,
is told the first hour he starts work, to
use typewriter.
The Old Joke Stuff.
Competitors who set the type in
those early days were happy, Joyous,
contented lot, from the devil to the old
est vet. The dictionary defines the
devil as "a printers apprentice" The
origin is indefinite but the name is APP
propriate.
81 hadn't been in a composing room
half an hour" said an old printer,
reminiscently, the other day, "when
one of the journeymen asked the work
man next to him if he had type
stretcher. He hadn't, of course, and
did not know where the one belonging
to the plant was. was told to go ov-
er to our competitor and borrow one.
| hustled out, glad of the opportunity.
The foreman of the other shop knitted
his brow for moment as though in
deep thought and then said that he be-
lieved he could let me have one if I'd
promise to return it. He directed me
to an iron bar which must have
weighed close to hundred pounds and
i carried that thing three blocks to
our plantF When / walked into the
composing room--well, you can inn
agine the way those hardboiled print
ers razzed me.
Son another occasion devil was
sent out for some italic spaces. He
went from one print shop to another,
there were several small ones in the
town, and finally was given a big pack