Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-02-19
BY WESTBROOK PEGLER


i nations that my persistent
yapping and furthermoring ct
certain of our labor unions is
having a quail-a-day effect on
the readers of these dispatches.
who, therefore, may be glad to
receive assurance that this is a
change of pace.
Anyway. / have long had IL
in mind to say that my idea OF
first-class newspaperman is a
little fellow that few people
outside New York, except other
newspapermen, ever heard Of.
and to fill you in on some OF his
characteristics, because the type
is a vanishing breed nowadays,
what with the development of
social-consciousness a n d mis-
sions-in-life among the members
of our set.
OUR subject is Sidney Whipple.
" who does theaters for the
World Telegram and who can
do just about anything anybody
can ask of him around the edi-
tOrial side of newspaper or
press association and do every
thing well.
He can write foreign stuff
from the cables, for instance.
turn out a noon or closing lead
on the market. go out and get
story by hand. whether an
interview on an up-the-dark-and-
creaking-stairs piece about a
sick child IN tenement tfeSs=
off jingle-verse almost as fast
as he can play the typewriter.
read copy, fIfe a wire HI IN on
sports or compose an edit0'ial
for or against anything.
There never were many as
versatile as Sidney who. for
extra. can tell cockney jokes
dating from the time ne worked
a trick in London and spent his
nights frequenting the 'alls. play
piano by ear ike an old-tlme
professor IN a Joint and when we
were very young, could SKIN the
cat as neat as you please on
those white enameled strap
hangers handles in the subway.
That was in the early days OF
prohibition when there was a
horrible goats nest in an old
building down behind the old
World where couple of Boys
who were prohibition agents,
sold sherry made out of syrup,
red pepper. tobacco juice. liquid
soap and painters alcohol which
we used to drink for choice. be-
cause the rye and scotch were
unreliable and might contain
harmful elements.
4 F'TER work at the old United
"a News. about , or 3 a. m.
Sidney and |, and often Henry
Farrell. the day-side sport edl-
tor, and maybe one or two
others. would do a little relax
ing in this place and when We
all got fairly well rejoiced and
started home he would hop up.
grab those handles and turn
himself inside out and back
again with his Grange and pa
pers showerlng out OF his
pockets all over the floor.
But. as ! say We were very
young then and full of gay
spirits. and. anyway, we were
putting in. II seems 10 me now.
about II or II hours a day OF
steady writing. and the choice
of amuSomcnts was pretty linn
tied after 3 a. m You had 10
get some fun out of life.
Before that Sidney had been
a city editor in Syracuse. and
since then he has been a man
aging editor in South Bend and
Denver. and. although he hasn't
the Chaplin or Bovard temporal
ment. discipline under him
would be pretty informal.
! will say that any young re-
porter who worked for him and
really paid attention was bound
to learn the business If he was
any good whatever.
IN OUR time Europe vas
1 bubbling every day, and Ire
land was in a terrible state OF
war against the Black and Tans.
and Sidney would come in late
in the afternoon, and by 8
o'clock. when the wire opened.
would have nice stack OF as
clean and musical copy as ever
YOU read, all prepared for the
operators. Then he would file
the wires and continue writing.
He would skin the afternoon
papers, too, without having TO
be told or advised. and pick out
maybe half a dozen little HARM
less brighteners which he would
whip into Items of frem1ee- to
200 words. and the night the big
navy dirigible pulled the cap
out of her hose at the mast in
Lakehurst and blew out to sea
in a storm he sat there bang
ing away for hours without get
ting out of his chair as jerky
little bulletins came in over the
ticker or correspondents phoned
from down the coast.
Copyrighted by United Features synd.. Inc.