Detroit evening times., 1945-03-07

am dDlo 10 SlAle--. ne PER-
pendicular pronoun was pre-
rogative enjoyed by only a few
OF our journalists. then, and
those few wa correspondents In
France and the Balkans.
IT seemed 10 us silly that
dispatch attributed, as Louies
were, 10 "our special commits
sioner" or our New York corr
respondent" but without by
line, should speak in the first
person but that was their way.
4 FTER he had done debating,
"a a days work which seldom
took him more than an hour.
Louie and his typist would
sort out the flimsy copies into
patches, one for each Of his
clients.
From that little cablegram
he would spin out as many as
half dozen Of his special dis
patches and his method was
then 10 send them down 10 the
censor IN Whitehall by mes
senger after which they went
10 The telegraph -efftee----
When all had been prepared
and the copy was IN the en-
VeIopeS, Mr. Moore would zap
on the wall beside him and
then, but not until then. there
would enter -our- pIe&nnce-
cii,e a tttiFe- -etitt TO imagination,
named Jerry, who Smelled so
violently that he was kept IN
the little ante-room.
This vas great imposition
on our telegraph editor whose
wire was there and II may have
shortened his life.
His telegraph machine. incl
dentally was A museum piece
unlike any that ! have ever
seen in America, with big
black knob, like darnlne egg.
for grip
Jerry had no chair bu, sat or
lay on a pile Of newspapers.
| 'PON being summoned, Jerry.
- like most English office
boys Of the time, would grab
his gloves. walking stick and
bowler hat and then would
stand al attention near Mr..
Moore awaiting his instructions
and scowllng like primitive
Bolshevik. for no hated Louie
and the detes was
mutual.
Sometimes. when he came TOO
close. Mr.. Moore. with a Sensi-
tive winclng of his nose. would
glare al him and say IN a soft
hut firm voice: Stand a little
away YOU have a beaStly
effluvium.
Jerrys stencil was honestly
come by His father was fish,
monger in Whltechapel and the
family lived in the shop. His
presence strongly suggested
fish-heads and tripes and there
was no reason to suspect that
he ever washed
I QUE MOORE gave Jerry an
~ allowance for his bus fare
10 Whitehall. but his usual
transportation was the coach Of
the Rile Mile" or ROYAL Mail,
a big red horse-drawn van.
My opinion of the English
press was not altogether un-
favorable and, strangely, the
stately papers with their leis-
urely methods and swollen dig
nifty made better impression
than their stunt press
The stunt press" was trying
10 initiate American Journalism
but was initiating only our
faults and doing II badly
The biz papers were con-
Stantly amazing us foreigners
with their solemn contempla-
tion Of trivialities. and / re-
member serious discussion by
number of authorities IN
response TO a letter from
SChoolmaster wanting 10 know
how deep angle worms burrow.
GONE Of our people who went
~ TO London scofflng Sue
cumbed to their habits and
never came home except TO
visit. The idea OF all hands
knocking off work in the middle
Of a watch to brew a pot of .
tea in the office fireplace and
smear Jam all over the desks
and keyboards was a shock at
first, hut il was one custom of
English journalism that prac-
tically all of us adopted.
But few of us ever were in-
fected nv their custom Of start
ing story "a fortnight since.
near Hove, Sussex. an extraordi-
nary mishap occurred and
leading up Ia six dead in .
Smashup in the last line. but
giving no names.
CopyriEht, l945, by King Festur0