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About The Reason. (Savannah, GA.) 1908-19?? | View Entire Issue (April 30, 1908)
weakness of his fellow mortals, is not to the point. It is pretty certain that his heirs are not worrying along this line. It may be safely assumed that if the spirit of the showman has the privilege of re turning to this planet, it must derive intense satis faction from the numbers and distinction of those who, by their business and professional methods, subscribe to their belief in the fact that the wily Barnum in the flesh knew whereof he spoke. If Barnum was wicked, he had the saving grace of loyalty to his best friends. Otherwise, he might have taken us farther in to his confidence and re vealed the identity of the chief vehicle upon which he transported his fake wares to the market place. Had his candor extended thus far. unquestionably he would have named the American press. The daily newspaper served Barnum well, but it was not a labor of love. The account between tin* newspapers and himself is square: the moral duty of either to the public generally was never considered of import ance, inasmuch as both believed that said public was getting what it wanted, and was willing to pay there for. The bulk of the press has extended its ad herence to Barnum's truism until this policy now overspreads practically every branch of its rela tions with the reader. If the time honored motto. “Honestv is the Best Police," survives in the aver age newspaper office at all. it has been hung over the desk of the religious editor. Assuredly it adorns not the business office nor the editorial rooms, which two departments are, in modern journalism, lik<‘ un to Jonathan and David, so closely do they cling, one ' to another. On April 22, in an address delivered at a joint banquet of The Associated Press and the American Newspaper Publishers' Association at the Waldorf Hotel, New York City, William J, Bryan made tin 1 following charges in the presence of the representa tives of over seven hundred daily newspapers of the i United States: “There is not an evil of which we complain that could live for a year in this countrv if we didn't hire editors to chloroform readers while their pock ets were being picked. It is only after the .crimes are committed and the postmortems held that we get a look behind the scenes and know what has been [ done. “The editorial page of today is often paid for and editorials are printed that are not written in the newspaper office. They are written by interest ed persons outside. Senator La Follette found that two hundred editors entered into a compact to print as editorials stuff furnished by the railroads. The way to purge journalism of this great evil is to form opinion among newspaper men that will ostracise the man who thus deceives the public. “The man who thinks he can write an editorial that is colorless deceives himself more than he de ceives the reader.'’ Was there any manifestation of indignation or an attempt to refute the truth of this arraignment, on the part of any editor or publisher present? None whatever. Why the speaker did not make his criticism cover the news, as well as the editorial columns, is diffi cult of conception. Very likely it is, however, that he had documentary proof of the one and nothing more than common knowledge of the other. It is interesting to speculate upon the problem of what percentage of the lay readers, that is, the THE REASON unversed in present journalistic methods, paused to consider and to wonder as to the why and the where fore of the sudden and violent switch of “public sentiment'' in this countrv as reflected bv tlit* changed tone of editorials and news dispatches from pro-Japanese to pro-Russian about the time of the assembling of th<* peace conference at Portsmouth, N. 11. It is sate to assert that nothing more re markable was ever witnessed in this country's his tory of journalism. Nor is this an intimation that each individual publisher was “approached’' by the subtle Russian financial agent. Such a course' would not be necessary. The fact is. nearly every daily paper in the smaller cities of the country singles out one of tin* greater journals of the larger cities as its mentor and guide, at least in so far as relates to its attitude upon international and sometimes national affairs. It might have been noted (hat many of the lesser lights balked rather obstinately in their editorial views for a time subsequent to the “flop." but it was difficult to stay out of the fold, by reason of tin* fact that such an attitude brought their editorial and news columns in violent collision. It may or may not have been of significance' that tin* executive head of the press distributing agency, which supplies the world's telegraphic news to an overwhelming majority of the American newspapers, had then but recently returned from a tour through Russia, where he was granted an honor but rarely awarded to foreigners, namely, an audience with the “Little Father." otherwise Czar Nicholas 11. It is very likely indeed that the situation was pretty thoroughly understood by the Japanese statesmen. But they were forced to keep their own council by considerations diplomatic. Japan was at the close of a war which had drained her money coffers, and the time not propitious for inciting the Japanese people to some act which might precipi tate another struggle. Quite naturally, however, resentment rankled and burned in the liearts of all classes in Japan, with the difference that the fires were banked in the breasts of the statesmen and dip lomats. while they crackled and spurted little blue tongues of flame upon tin* surface of the humble proletariate. On the other hand, the situation was misunder stood by the Japanese of the class we describe as the common people. This class is accustomed to seeing the Japanese journalistic attitude upon inter national affairs very largely directed ami dictated bv the Mikado, or his cabinet. Hence, they hold President Roosevelt responsible for the fluctuating “public sentiment" on this side of the Pacific, labor ing under the misapprehension that Hie latter wields the power of a Mikado. Furthermore, they are dis posed to “visit the sins of the father upon the sons.’’ at least unto the present generation, holding that as the Americans elect their Chief Executive, his acts are their acts. All which, summed up. means that the Japs hate all of us because of tin* resounding “knocks" administered over here during tin* peace conference to Japan’s scheme of reprisal against her erstwhile foe. So. the United States must be licked; the deeply thoughtful Oriental says, wait a while: the voice of the commoner yells, “Banzai! We shall do it now — n-o-w.” Some time we shall surely have it out. It should be apparent to all who art' capable of reasoning that it may be a trifle dangerous to persist in our fondness for being humbugged. 7
