The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1929-06-14

For these North Carolina editors
and publishers are seriouS-minded
lot; most of them arc seriously en-
gagged in the business OF making
money and they become solemn and
furtive from having to be constantly
on their p's and q's lest they print
something that will offend sub
scriber or an advertiser. 1t is a
hard and fast rule in buSineSS-like
newspaper offices to-day to cul-
tivate good will and newspapers to
make money must be amiable and
This is the first meeting OF the
North Carolina Press Association in
Elizabeth City since 1882, at which
time the late r. B. Creecy was In
the hey-day Of his glory. Since 1897
the press association has stayed
away from Elizabeth City becau;e
of it's inaccessibility and lack OF
hotel facilities. Good roads and
modern hotels brought the news
mongers back.
Members of the Association began
to flock into Elizabeth City Tues
day night and were fresh for the
first business session "Wednesday
morning. Wednesday afternoon
they visited the Elizabeth City
Country Club and partook of Jim
Thompson fish fry. The tycoon OF
fish friers was ably assisted by Par
son Bond and Stewards Charlie
Pappendick and ]. Boushrod Leigh
of the First Methodist Church.
Last night the visitors and town
people heard Governor o. Max
Gardner at the Carolina Theatre
and to-day many of them will pay
a visit to historic Roanoke Island
on the State Fisheries Commission
Yacht Capt. Nelson, which was
graciously placed at the disposal
of the newspaper men by Col. j. W.
Harrelson, Director bf the State De-
partment of Conservation ana
Development.
Many members of the. association
.motored to Edenton yesterday TO see
THE Cradle of the Colony"
A Tribute to "W. o."
A great tribute to The Indcpen-
dent and its editor w. o. Saunders
was paid by Hon. Josephus Daniels
editor of the Raleigh News g. Obser-
yer. in an address to the convention
Wednesday morning. Mr.. Daniels
first paid a fulsome" tribute to Her
bert Peele and The Daily Advance,
declaring The Advance to be the
superior of any daily newspaper III
North Carolina. He said that the
members of the press association
came to Elizabeth City among other
things to see how Peele publishes
such a splendid newspaper.
And then, as if merely to be nice
about it, he said some pleasant
things about The Independents.
asserting that when w. 0. Saund-
ers made The Independent the moio
was broken. There is not another
newspaper like it."
And then for nearly thirty minu-
tes Mr.. Daniels deplored the same
ness of modern newspapers. thelr
lack of personality and their lack
of intense reader interest. The un-
forgiyeable sin of the newspaper
profession to-day" said Mr.. Danlels,
"is sameness.
81 am sometimes inclined TO ba-
,;evo that we are members ot
vanishing race. Today news comes
in to our printers by telegraph TO-
morrow a man seated at machlne
in New York will set the type Tor
the daily newspapers OF the entlre
country and on the day after 1t may
be done by photography
"No newspaper can survive con-
tinual consistent, boring dullneSs
and there is an imminent danger
TODAY with standardized front page
and editorial and news columns I'LL
ed with syndicated matter until one
can hardly tell newspaper pup
lished in Bangor, Maine from one Ill
Oklahoma
The newspaper profession has
risen.-from the almost mendicah'
nosition which it once occupied, lie
said and some editors have pe-
come independent and even wealthy
as q result of the huge advertising
proerams which have grown up since
the war. There is a greater danger
from prosperity than there was ever
from poverty and adversely ana
there are those who have forgotten
their duty to the public and have
come to consider their papers as
nroperty to be sold to the hlgfeSI
market. If the time comes Wiieh
selfish interests control the pres" ior
the purpose of disseminating piop-
apanda and debauchlng the pubic
I service. then the profession OF jour
nallsm Will be no higher IMAM IilaU
of flshmonger. and the clause III 1he
Constitution guaranteeing the Tree
k&<, %