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’•mu; ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. John Temple Graves accepts Editorship on N. Y. American; Highest Newspaper Honor Ever Paid a Southern Man; Editorials will continue to appear in The Georgian. GEORGIAN’S EDITOR ACCEPTS HIGH POST (From Saturday’* Georgian,) John Temple Graves, editor of The Georgian, has accepted edltorahlp on The New York American and on No vember 15 will leave Atlanta to assume the chief editorial responsibility of the greatest of the eight great newspapers of William Randolph Hearst. The selection of Mr. Oraves for this post Is the most distinguished compli ment paid a Southern newspaper man no great- newspa- er honor per work on this continent. The New York American Is known among newspaper men everywhere to be Mr. Hearst’s favorite, as It Is the most Influential of all his newspapers. In writing to Mr. Graves of the ap pointment. Mr. Bradford Merrill, man ager for Mr. Hearst, says: ’’As many of your editorials will be simultaneously printed in his papers In Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles, 1' do not know of any editorial post In the world In which a man could exert more power and Influ ence, nor one In which a great nation al reputation could be more certainly won. I think, therefore, that you are to be congratulated upon so great an opportunity." Mr. Graves and Mr. Hearst have been good friends for years, and the New York publisher has before this offered Mr. Graves connection with his news- C sptrs. Not until the present tender, owever, has Mr. Oraves been able to persuade hlmsolf to leave the South and all that It means to him In his work and In the public and personal ties that bind him to this section. Even so flattering an offer as this would doubtless have failed to move him ex cept that Mr. Hearst'a strongest, pur pose In calling him to The American was that he might speak for and to the South through Its columns. Mr. Oraves' newspaper work In the South Is too well known to the re motest corner of this section to be spoken of here. Mr, 8*ely to Give Dinner, In recognition of Mr. Graves' great public service as an editor and publi cist, In appreciation of the high mis sion which he goes to fulfill for the South, and to afford his many friends In Georgia and throughout the South ern states an opportunity to say good-bye, a lnrge public dinner will be tendered Mr. Graves by Mr. Seely, publisher of The Geor gian, at the Piedmont Hotel on the evening of November i, which, by hap py coincidence, Is Mr. Graves' fiftieth birthday. The dinner will be an elaborate and democratic affair, to which 500 guests will be bidden. These will Include the leading editors and publishers of “ " ' * j con- Graves MR. GRAVES’ STATEMENT (From Saturday's Georgian.) It is like pulling eye teeth for me to think of saying goodbye to Georgia and The Georgian. All my life has been wrapped about the beloved state, and the best that is in me of these later years has been consecrated to this cherished newspaper. Mr. Hearst has tendered me editorial responsibility upon the New York American, the first and favorite of his eight great newspapers. The signal promo tion in the line of my profession is a great temptation. The increased emolument is a large consideration to one who has never found time in his public service to make money. These in themselves would not have carried me to New York. I have had other flattering offers to go there within recent years. If the editorial page of The American did not offer me a larger field for service and remembrance for the people whom I love, I would decline it now. When Mr. Hearst asked me to Boston, cfiio join him ho said: “I wish to do two things: I wish to make The American national, and I de sire to help the South.” Mr. Hearst has always been a brave and generous friend to the South, and I am sure that he means what he said to me. Both of these objects are dear to my heart. I love Georgia and the South as children love their mother. But loving my state and section, I love also the great republic of which it is a part, and it has been the dream and aspiration of my later years to establish the oneness of our country. The opportunity for serv ice along these great lines is infinitely greater in the columns of The American, which ranks as one of the three or four great newspapers of the world. The edi torials of The American upon general themes are repeated generally to the other dailies of the system in Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Speaking every day to some four million people and sometimes to twice as many, I can be of greater service to the South and to the country than in my present field. That is if I can be of service anywhere. And this larger opportunity for service is the supreme consideration which leads me over the pain in my heart to leave the dearest associations of my life, and to break ties which have grown to be fibres in my nature. I shall serve this people better absent than I have ever been able to serve them present, and this is the consolation which salves some of the sorrow with which I say goodbye. For the rest, the policies of The New York American, its creeds of govern ment, its consistent championship of popular rights have been the tilings for which «£ Smih‘ K wi™'on"KMion,' ’ ... , , . gressmsn, most of whom Mr. i I have written and spoken since I have been of age. I am following my cohvic- numbom a* in* pononoi friend*, tus . , .... . , . , n , „ _ larger list of guests will be made up tions straight to its editorial sanctum, and the people of Georgia will bear me from the mend* of Mr. o«re* m P ut»- witness that I have not faltered within these five years m the faith that its pub lisher is one of the greatest, truest and bravest Americans of h& generation. The pang is in those I leave behind me. I can not speak of that. No mere words can convey the regret with which I leave the people who have always been better to me than I deserved, and to whom my only compensation has been the love and loyalty I have given them. No man knows better than I do the defects in the work which I have done within these years in Georgia. All its faults and im perfections parade before me in the perspective of separation, and I am sorry for some things that I have done and for so many of the things that I have left un done. Of only one thing I am sure. My motives have been good. I have hated no man, wronged no man, nor used any power given me by press or platform to vent a personal enmity or to voice a private grudge. I have sought for kind words whenever they could possibly take the place of bitter ones, and I have hugged the sunshine, thanking God for it, while to the best of the human that was in me I have loved my fellowmen—Georgia, in thy gentlest charity be all my faults re membered. I am indebted to The Georgian in greater part for the honor and responsi bility which have come to me here unsought. Mr. Seely’s munificent liberality, bis splendid lieartfulness, his catholic kindness, and his raro power of judgment and organization have given me the best and broadest arena in which I have ever been free to work. It is from The Georgian’s columns which he more than I have made great and strong, that I have been lifted to a larger professional sphere. I am perfectly sure that my exit will be more than compensated by his entrance upon editorial work. It is with my going that the people of Georgia will come to know Fred L. Seely better. He has a great heart, a great purpose and a great brain which are all consecrated to the service of the city and the state. There is the ring of the genuine in Mr. Seely’s written speech—the simplicity and naturalness which is the highest strength, and there is always in them the sugges tion of a man behind the words which will give them weight and dignity. With tlie large culture of travel and study he combines a practical training which stamps him for high and vigorous usefulness in the years which are before him. I have no fear for the splendid future of The Georgian in his hands. May all my friends be his. * , . To my contemporaries of the press in Atlanta and m the state I extend in parting from local and state associations a right hand that is heartiness it self. No shadow of memory lingers upon any passing asperity of division that the bygone has in store. I remember only the fellowship, the kind words, the brave purpose, and the rare capaeitv to bury every difference in the common cause of Georgia and the right. To Dick Gray and Clark Howell and Pleas Sto vall and brave old Pendleton, and generous Henry McIntosh, and Tom Loyless and Bowdre Phinizv and Colonel Estill and John Boifeuillet and Hardy and McCart ney, and Tom Reed and John Greer, Lindsay Johnson and Groover, names all a part of my happy memory, with all my splendid brethren of the weekly press, I blow a breath of parting' that would be balm and benediction if it were mine to give. We shall all be food for worms within the half century, brethren. Let us be forgiving and friendly even in our fighting while we live. And to this great hearted and charitable people who make our Georgia, my debt is too deep for utterance, and my tongue when it touches you is too thick for speech. You have been good to me beyond my merits, trusted me beyond my "orth but not beyond my motives, and made me happy for more than thirty .' ears. There is no forgetting or forsaking the obligation which binds me. If I am or am to be anything in the future it is to you I owe it. You have fed* me by your kindness, nourished me by your sympathy and inspired me by your applause. “If any word or thought of mine nas ever given hope or consolation You have repaid me back a thousand fold * tt™ By every friendly sign and salutation.” JOHN TEMPLE GRAVES. lie and private life In Georgia and rep. resentatlvee of the official and private cltlsenshlp of Atlanta. It will be a notable gatherlrtg In Its personnel—one of the largest and most distinguished ever assembled upon a similar occa sion In the South. Entrance Into Journalism. Mr. Graves' entrance Into Journalism, like his entrance Into oratory, was dra matic and unexpected. Just as his speech over the dead body of Henry Grady lifted him In a night Into na tional fame os an orator, eo his en trance Into Journalism was totally Im pulsive and unexpected. Joseph E. Brown and General A. R. Lawton were candidates for the United States senate In Georgia In 1M1. They spoke on euccessive nights before the legislature In advocacy of their claims. Mr. Graves, then a school teacher In Decatur, sat In the gallery, and when it was over went home and wrote for The Athens Banner a sketch of the two men and the two evenings with tho impression which had been made upon his mind. He pictured the battle be tween the two statesmen as the crucial battle between the fine Influence of the old regime of sentiment In Georgia and the utilitarian forces of the New South. He palmed General Lawton as the type of the Southern aristocrat, flno gt{ted, clean garbed and chlvalrlc, car. rylng the heart nnd tradition of tne old South. He pictured Joe Brown as the type of the practical new South, with Its commercial aspirations, Its Indus trial stir. Its eager development, and made a fine figure of "the cavalier of dashing memories going down before the shaven round head and the Al mighty Dollar.” The article was copied all over tho South. Colonel Avery put It Into his "History of Georgia" us the most graphic pen picture of the times, and two dally newspapers offered Mr. Graves a managing editorship. One of these on The Jacksonville Union he nc. ceftted and began In Jacksonville the career which culminates today In the editorial sanctum of The New York American. He later, In conjunction with Messrs. Carter and Russell, found ed the Jacksonville Metropolis, now one of the moat prosperous of ths South's dallies. Once Editor of The Journal. While In Florida, Mr. Oraves was actively on the stump In several state and national campaigns, and his speeches created such extraordinary enthusiasm that his horses were fre quently taken from his carriage and he was carried through the streets by shouting thousands amid showers of flowers. He was elector at large In Florida In 1K84 and In Georgia In lliS, and led the battle In both states. He has never held public office or gone to the polls to seek one. He has probably hsd more personal honors and ovations than any man now living In ths South, and has been lets spelled by them. Mr. Graves was called by Hoke Smith to be edltnr-in-chlef of The Atlanta Journal In 1157. and only left ths page to assume absolute control of The Tri bune, of Rome, which he held for three years and left because of a friendly political difference with the stockhold ers—strangely enough over his refusal to bolt ths Democratic nomination of R. W. Everett for congress and to sup. port Dr. William If. Felton os sn Inde pendent. Everett was elscted. Mr. Graves' editorship of The Atlanta Dally News and the distinction and popularity he gave that paper Is of too recent history to call for repetition here. Mr. Oraves Joined with Mr. Seely In eha establishment of The Georgian, whose editorial chair fie assumed with Its first Issue, April 25. IMS, and which he has held unbrokenly until he leaves- The Georgian on November IS. MR. SEELY’S STATEMENT. (From Bsturdny's Georgian.) Possibly few realize fully what it means for Mr. Graves to be called to edit The Now York. American. , First, let us set aside tlie matter of whether we individually like or dislike Mr. Hearst or his policies. No one is always right, and Mr. Graves’ identifying himself so closely with Mr. Hearst does not mean that lie accepts or rejects all or any of Mr. Hearst’s ideaB. Mr. Graves has ideas of his own. Mr, Hearst is probably the largest individual newspaper owner in the world. He owns, in his own right, eight of the biggest papers in the United States, not to mention several magazines, tho great “Cosmopolitan” being one of the latter. His New York Evening Journal has the largest circulation of any daily paper in the United States—nearly three-quarters of a million. Whatever he has done, he has shown himself capable of conducting his af fairs in such a manner that, unlike the proverbial rich man’s son, he has added to his list of holdings as the years have gone by, rather than been compelled to re trench. He has in his hand today, without lease or let from any man, the great est power of publicity, the greatest rein over right or wrong through the printed page, of any living man, and with it all, he has called to his side no less than that distinguished and honored Georgian, John Temple Graves, to be possibly his clos est personal adviser and to edit the biggest and most Berious of all liis papers— nationally and otherwise—The New York American. Mr. Graves and Mr. Hearst have been friends for years. In the main, Mr. Graves has been an admirer and supporter of Mr. Hearst and his policies—he has not hesitated, however, to criticise adversely, from time to time, such acts of Mr. Hearst as did not meet his approval. Probably Mr. Hearst has liked that in him— really strong men do not believe in friends who approve of every act blindly— real friends tell you of your mistakes—false friends tell you you don’t make any. And so Mr. Hearst has said to Mr. Graves, “We have wanted you a long time, but now you must come.” Very well—what may this all mean to Georgia, and wlmt can Mr. Graves do for the land that gave him life and light and tradition and romance and all that makes him what ho is? J Why should he leave us now? Many men have been called from the East, the West, the North nnd the South to serve their country and their section—our own governor was honored to sit in the president’s cabinet in 1893, but his contact was principally with less than a dozen men who sat at the eapitol and watched over the enforcement of laws that the people at large had made, and had little power to help the section that had reared him except to represent its needs as best he could at the seat of government. Notice the contrast—Mr. Graves has been called to sit at the seat of gov ernment of the greatest organization of publicity our nation has ever seen—to advise with and aid in directing the pulse that gives the life blood to the daily visits of nearly four millions of copies of the Hearst papers to the homes of the peo ple of the East, the North and the West, and to give the messages that shall in fluence the more than ten millions of readers that these papers have. The South has laws—has Federal protection, has the mails, the army and all—but it has problems that the North and the East and the West have not, and only the few who are privileged to visit us long enough to realize them, learn that we labor under difficulties that can not be regulated unless understood. And now the opportunity is afforded us to send a favored son, who, with all the traditions, the trials, the joys and the sorrows of our sunny Southland bound up in his bosom, shall be our ambassador to the courts of the world to represent us not to tlie few but to represent us to the millions of the common peoplor who shall make the laws under which we must live. He does not go, it is true, to write incessantly about the South—lie goes to discuss matters of national importance, politically and otherwise, for the great daily newspaper of which he shall he the head. But as the violet could not grow and take its color and shape without tlie matchless but unseen and unheard odor that it gives, no more could lie, whoso every heart beat sends the blood of Dixie land coursing through his veins, do less than glorify and defend us, though his theme may often treat of matters far re mote from us. It will fall to my lot to take up the editorship of The Georgian where Mr. Graves shall leave it. My efforts will seem but feeble as compared with what he has done. My life has been one of matter of fact. My style of putting what I may have to say in written words is more or less blunt. It is not entertaining. You have seen it often in Mr. Graves’ absence from the city—principally during the prohibition campaign and the sessions of the legislature. I am fortunate in having seen much of the world. I know its needs—its joys—its Borrows. I have a happy home, where the children play and sing and keep the hearts tender—and it may be that, in time, the readers of The Georgian and I shall grow a relation of sym pathy and interest that shall he tolerable. I never expect the place Mr. Graves has won in your hearts. That may be filled in part by tne fact that The Georgian will receive his editorials each day over its telegraph wires that keep The Georgian office in direct touch with New York, and they will, of course, be printed on the editorial page. They should be even more interesting than ever, since they will treat almost entirely of national sub jects that will never fail to touch the South as keenly as any other section. Sir. Graves’ time, too, will be used a great deal in addressing large gather ings, political and otherwise, and, in fact, his field of usefulness will be magni fied a thousand fold, in all of which we shall share. The Georgian will be the greatest loser—we will miss him most. Only the grossest selfishness could prompt us to ask him to refuse this, the crowning recog nition of his life, with five times the remuneration we could give him. It is the highest compliment that could he paid The Georgian—the highest honor that could he paid the South. If other considerations were as nothing, we could not rob the South of the results that will surely follow Mr. Graves’ ad vancement. So we say go—and a thousand hopes and joys go with you to cheer you on your way. Our hearts and our prayers go with you, and 1f your work is ever done, or if sickness or death rob you of your joys, and your heart turns hack to Dixie, as it surely will sonic time—remember the door is open—it stands ajar to you always—the chair you have left will await you, and you will come hack as a soldier who lias left the’ sunny hills of his happy home and fought our battles at the front for God and home and native land. F. L. SEELY, Publisher.