Evening star., 1941-11-16
Fields New Chicago Newspaper Seen Renewo
Of Long Standing Feud With McCormicks

friend, John Hay Whitney, one OF
Mr.. Ingersolrs original hackers. Mr..
Field was not in at the beginning
but when Mr.. Whitney and others
pulled out. Mr.. Field continued to
give the paper his support. He had
developed a strong personal friend
ship with Mr.. Ingersoll whose eager
ness and enthusiasm impressed him
deeply.
Friends and even his close business
associate, Charles c. Cushing.
strongly urged him to get out of PM
which was under attack for its left
wing trend. But Mr.. Field remained
loyal. Mr.. Cushing, who Is perhaps
Mr.. Fields closest adviser, was dis
turbed by the extent of the PM
losses.
Truck Strike Threatened.
Looking around for small econ
omies, two delivery trucks were done
away with, according to one story.
Promptly came a threat from the
truckers union to call q strike. The
ultimatum came that a strike would
be called within five days unless
the trucks were restored.
Five days." Mr.. Cushing is re-
ported to have replied. why don't
you strike tomorrow? You'll save us
$4,000 a day for every day you're
on strike"
For some time Mr.. Field had the
Idea Of Chicago paper in the back
OF his mind. Mr.. Field was impressed
by the abilities of the blunt-talking
Silliman Evans, publisher of the
Nashville TenneSseean. Mr.. Evans
Mr.. Field and Mr.. Gushing began to
plan for the new paper. The first
formal announcement was made in
the middle of September.
Since that time Owner Field and
Publisher Evans have been busy
getting together an editorial and
business stan for the new paper
Rex Smith, former editor Of News
Week. was chosen managing editor,
and Frank j. Taylor, former man
agaging editor OF the st. Louis Star
Times, was named assistant to the
publisher As publisher, Mr.. Evans
intends to divide his time between
Nashville and the Tennesseean and
Chicago and the new paper which
will be named under the terms of
a public contest that has Just ended.
Chief correspondent Of the new
paper is Turner Catledge. formerly
of the New York Times Bureau In
Washington. who is said to have
been given a personal contract with
Mr.. Field for $4,000 a year.
H. r. Knickerbocker. veteran
Hearst correspondent In Europe, has
been hired to build up a foreign
staff. Bascom N. Timmons. CORE
spondent in Washington for Jesse
Jones Houston Chronicle and other
Southwest newspapers. is to be chief
Washington correspondent of the
new paper. Mr.. Timmons is as
sembling a stan Of IL or l3 men In
Washington.
Will BE Standard Size.
The new paper will be more
nearly stan written than any other
paper in the country" Mr.. Smith
said.
In every way Mr.. Evans and Mr.
Gushing are trying to make sure that
no one will mistake the new paper
for a Chicago PM. It will be stand
ard size and not . tabloid. 1t will
take all the ads 1t can get. as its
publisher announced. 1t will have
a regular editorial page. While PM
hired staff writer's with liberal and
labor sympathies. the new paper is
putting the emphasis on hardboiled
newspapermen. There have been
quite a number Of recruits from Mr.
Hearst and the Tribune.
One of the toughest assignments
is certain to fall to the new circula-
ton manager, Jack Stenbuck. whose
first assignment is to be John M
Schmidt, former circulation chief for
Mr.. Hearst's Chicago Herald-Ex-
aminer. Both Mr.. Stenbuck and Mr.
Schmidt are familiar with the tao
tics of violence that marked the
early circulation wars between Col
Mccormick and Mr.. Hearst when
the Tribune and the Herald-Ex
aminer had COON squads that went
with each delivery truck. Heads
were smashed, papers destroyed and
out Of this graduate school in viol-
ence came many Of the gangsters
who were to give Chicago an unen-
viable reputation in the 20s. While
they will not talk about it, the di-
rectors Of the new paper obviously
would not be surprised If they were
faced with present day news stand
war.
We're going to get out a news
paper that We hope you want to
buy" Mr.. Evans said in a talk be-
fore the Commonwealth Club, "and
if you want to buy 1t we're going
to get it to you"
Recalls Early Loan.
The Tribune carried a brief an
nouncement Of the new paper and
has had no mention of it since. In
Capt. Patterson's New York News,
however. a long editorial appeared
recounting "A Little Newspaper His
tory" 1t told how the founder of
the Tribune, Joseph Medill, had
lost control Of the paper In the
course of political row, and had
gone to Marshall Field I in 1874 to
borrow the money to buy up all the
Tribune stock.
THAT was not all Medill found
he had bought" said the Patterson
editorial. He had also bought a
great deal of freely and frequently
given advice from Marshall Field
on almost everything under the sun,
especially on how to run a news
paper. Medill nursed the Tribune
back to health: and on January 2
1883, he took the full amount of his
debt around to Mr.. Field. Mr.. Field
courteously offered to extend the
loan but Medill insisted on paying
it in full on its due date, saying
Now again, Mr.. Fields, we meet as
equals"
Col. Mccormick refuses to discuss
the morning paper situation with
reporters. His secretary says that
request for an interview with the
colonel is silly" Strangely enough